Blake Bortles is the NFL’s undisputed king of garbage time.
After completing just eight passes in a first half dominated by the Tennessee Titans on Thursday night, Bortles finished Jacksonville’s 36-22 loss with 354 passing yards, three touchdowns and a 97.5 passer rating. He threw all three scores after the Jaguars fell behind 27-0.
According to ESPN’s Mike DiRocco, Bortles threw 44 passes while trailing by 20 or more points against the Titans. He threw another 43 while down by 20 or more points against the San Diego Chargers in Week 2, giving him the two highest totals by a quarterback this season.
According to NFL.com, Bortles has thrown 63 passes with the Jaguars ahead or tied in 2016. He’s thrown 227 with his team trailing. Seven of Bortles’ 12 touchdowns have come in the fourth quarter, but only two of the seven have come with the Jaguars within one score.
Those numbers line up nicely with Bortles’ NFL career.
Per DiRocco, Bortles has thrown 20 of his 58 career touchdowns with the Jaguars trailing by 10 or more points, including 11 scores with Jacksonville down by at least 21. He also leads the NFL in attempts with the Jaguars down by 20 or more points since 2014.
Over 37 career games, Bortles has 32 touchdown passes in the first three quarters, and 26 in the fourth. He also has nine career touchdowns with the Jaguars leading or tied, and 47 with Jacksonville trailing.
Garbage time makes life easy on quarterbacks, as opposing defenses relax coverage and focus on taking away quick scoring plays down the field. The result is a bevy of short, easy completions, and—in Bortles’ case—a huge increase in yards and touchdowns.
Bortles has made a living off putting up big numbers with the Jaguars trailing. It’s officially time to label him the NFL’s garbage time king.
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