2.08 Carolina Convicts - QB Blake Bortles

In the real world: The Jacksonville Jaguars, after giving Blaine Gabbert chance after chance after chance to succeed as an NFL QB, selected Bortles with the third overall pick in the NFL Draft. Bortles has prototypical size, the ability to brush off the rush and keep plays alive (a la Ben Roethlisberger), and a track record for leading his team to victory (road wins against Penn State and Louisville, and he took Central Florida to its first-ever BCS Bowl, the Fiesta Bowl, also a victory over Baylor). After the Fiesta Bowl, his draft stock rose steadily. ESPN's Ron Jaworski ranked him #1 on his list of this year's QBs. Bortles is arguably the rawest of the "Big 3" quarterbacks in this year's draft, however--he worked out of the shotgun in an offense predicated on short passes.

In the TUFF world: Going into Round 2, I had penciled in RB Charles Sims to the Cons (Doug Martin handcuff), but I had assumed that Bortles would be gone long before this pick. Bortles makes perfect sense for the Cons. Alex Smith is 30 years old and always seems to have someone looking over his shoulder these days, the next-best QB on the roster (Michael Vick) will be 34 next month and seems resigned to serving as a veteran backup/mentor for Geno Smith, and the other two QBs (Matt Barkley, Matt Flynn) are question marks.