Blake Bortles choosing Rams without other visits shows confidence in team
By Dan Parzych
Blake Bortles agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Rams this offseason to become the new backup quarterback to Jared Goff.
Early on in the offseason, the Los Angeles Rams seemed to have their minds set on moving on from Sean Mannion at quarterback before convincing Blake Bortles to come on board for a one-year deal to become the new backup to Jared Goff.
Football fans can say whatever they want about the former first-round pick’s struggles at times over the years as the starting quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars, but Bortles has the experience the Rams were looking for.
Plus, with Sean McVay having a history of quarterback development, it was easy to understand why Bortles was so excited about coming to Los Angeles since if all goes well in 2019, other teams may consider him for a starting job down the road in 2020.
In fact, Bortles loved the idea of joining the Rams so much, a new report discussed how he didn’t even feel the need to take part in previously scheduled visits with the Baltimore Ravens and Denver Broncos because Los Angeles seemed like such a great fit.
Plus, after watching the Rams come up shy of winning Super Bowl 53 after falling to the New England Patriots in February, Bortles most likely felt McVay and company would be his best opportunity to earn a ring next season, even if it meant playing behind Goff.
The success by Los Angeles over the last two seasons didn’t happen on accident since McVay is one of the best in the business for a reason, and it will be exciting to follow Bortles throughout the 2019 season to see how he progresses as a quarterback.
Even if Bortles most likely would have been in better position to compete for playing time on other teams since Goff isnt’ going away anytime soon, this decision has the potential to work wonders in the long run.
Just like around this time last offseason, the Rams will enter 2019 as one of the early favorites in the NFC to make a run at the Super Bowl, and if they actually find a way to hoist the Lombardi Trophy this time around, it will make the decision by Bortles even more worth it.