Rick Gosselin
This should be the biggest mismatch of the season for the Cowboys — defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli vs. a rookie quarterback.
The Cowboys had to travel across the ocean to London for it, but the matchup Sunday provides Jason Garrett the opportunity to get his team back on a smooth highway after seeing it run off the road the last two weeks.
Marinelli’s defense has taken a pounding of late. It has allowed 748 yards, 41 first downs and 48 points in the last two weeks in home losses to Washington and Arizona, knocking the Cowboys out of first place in the NFC East.
Next up, however, comes the Jacksonville Jaguars at 1-8 with rookie quarterback Blake Bortles. The Jaguars rank 30th in the NFL in offense and have thrown a league-high 14 interceptions, including 13 by Bortles.
Bortles is a veteran of only seven NFL starts, so an experienced coordinator like Marinelli should still be able to confuse him with his blitz and coverages packages. But it’s getting a little harder to fool Bortles with each passing week.
Bortles had the talent to become the third overall selection of the 2014 NFL draft. At 6-5, 230 pounds, Bortles also fits the prototype for the position that allows him the best chance to succeed.
Bortles posted a 22-5 record in his two seasons as the starting quarterback at Central Florida, passing for 56 touchdowns and rushing for 15 more. He also set a school record for interception avoidance with only 19 in 891 passes.
But the players are bigger and the game faster in the NFL than in it was in the American Athletic Conference, so it’s been an adjustment for Bortles. He already has lost more starts in his NFL career (six) than he did his entire college career.
Bortles regularly threw for 300 and 400 yards in games at Central Florida. But twice in his brief NFL career he’s been held under 200 yards. He has thrown interceptions in each of his seven starts, including three against Tennessee. He was sacked four times by the Dolphins and fumbled the ball away once that day.
But his interceptions have decreased over the last three weeks, from three against Cleveland to two against Miami to one against Cincinnati. Bortles also had his second career two-touchdown game last weekend against the Bengals, hitting fellow rookie Allen Hurns for scores of 40 and 18 yards.
Bortles rallied the Jaguars from a 19-3 third-quarter deficit on the road against AFC North-leading Cincinnati, fueling a rally with his two TD passes to Hurns that cut the deficit to 26-23 with eight minutes remaining. But the Bengals added an insurance touchdown to close out the game 33-23.
Two weekends earlier, Bortles collected his first win, and the Jaguars their only win, with a 24-6 romp over Cleveland. That defeat is keeping the 5-3 Browns out of first place in the AFC North. Bortles threw a TD pass to fellow rookie Allen Robinson and also rushed for 37 yards that day.
Marinelli is in his 19th season coaching NFL defenses. He coached units that led the NFL at Tampa Bay and ranked in the top five at Chicago. He’s taken down some great quarterbacks in his day. He can and should take down a rookie quarterback.
This should be the biggest mismatch of the season for the Cowboys — defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli vs. a rookie quarterback.
The Cowboys had to travel across the ocean to London for it, but the matchup Sunday provides Jason Garrett the opportunity to get his team back on a smooth highway after seeing it run off the road the last two weeks.
Marinelli’s defense has taken a pounding of late. It has allowed 748 yards, 41 first downs and 48 points in the last two weeks in home losses to Washington and Arizona, knocking the Cowboys out of first place in the NFC East.
Next up, however, comes the Jacksonville Jaguars at 1-8 with rookie quarterback Blake Bortles. The Jaguars rank 30th in the NFL in offense and have thrown a league-high 14 interceptions, including 13 by Bortles.
Bortles is a veteran of only seven NFL starts, so an experienced coordinator like Marinelli should still be able to confuse him with his blitz and coverages packages. But it’s getting a little harder to fool Bortles with each passing week.
Bortles had the talent to become the third overall selection of the 2014 NFL draft. At 6-5, 230 pounds, Bortles also fits the prototype for the position that allows him the best chance to succeed.
Bortles posted a 22-5 record in his two seasons as the starting quarterback at Central Florida, passing for 56 touchdowns and rushing for 15 more. He also set a school record for interception avoidance with only 19 in 891 passes.
But the players are bigger and the game faster in the NFL than in it was in the American Athletic Conference, so it’s been an adjustment for Bortles. He already has lost more starts in his NFL career (six) than he did his entire college career.
Bortles regularly threw for 300 and 400 yards in games at Central Florida. But twice in his brief NFL career he’s been held under 200 yards. He has thrown interceptions in each of his seven starts, including three against Tennessee. He was sacked four times by the Dolphins and fumbled the ball away once that day.
But his interceptions have decreased over the last three weeks, from three against Cleveland to two against Miami to one against Cincinnati. Bortles also had his second career two-touchdown game last weekend against the Bengals, hitting fellow rookie Allen Hurns for scores of 40 and 18 yards.
Bortles rallied the Jaguars from a 19-3 third-quarter deficit on the road against AFC North-leading Cincinnati, fueling a rally with his two TD passes to Hurns that cut the deficit to 26-23 with eight minutes remaining. But the Bengals added an insurance touchdown to close out the game 33-23.
Two weekends earlier, Bortles collected his first win, and the Jaguars their only win, with a 24-6 romp over Cleveland. That defeat is keeping the 5-3 Browns out of first place in the AFC North. Bortles threw a TD pass to fellow rookie Allen Robinson and also rushed for 37 yards that day.
Marinelli is in his 19th season coaching NFL defenses. He coached units that led the NFL at Tampa Bay and ranked in the top five at Chicago. He’s taken down some great quarterbacks in his day. He can and should take down a rookie quarterback.
