Nearly 100 underclassmen have declared for the 2014 NFL draft, which is shaping up to be a very deep crop of talent. One of those 100 underclassmen includes UCF’s star QB Blake Bortles. Bortles has made a name for himself this past football season after taking the UCF Knights on a school best, 12-1 season, with just one loss to South Carolina. Included in the 12-1 record was huge wins over Penn State and Louisville, and undoubtedly the highlight of the season, the first BCS Bowl Game appearance and win for UCF, at the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. With all that said, Eric Edholm, a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports, recently compiled a NFL Draft Report/Mock Draft, and put UCF’s Blake Bortles at #5 to go to the Oakland Raiders. This is what Edholm said in his Draft Report:
“5. Oakland Raiders — Central Florida QB Blake Bortles
This seems like the type of height-weight-arm prospect they like, even post-Al Davis, and Bortles fills a need at a still-uncertain position. It’s painting lame-duck head coach Dennis Allen into a bit of a corner, with a first-round quarterback, but it’s not as if Terrelle Pryor or Matt McGloin are likely to help save his job. Personally, as much as I like Bortles (based off the four games I have watched of him), I would not be using a top-five pick on him. But then again, I am not Reggie McKenzie.”
Personally, I don’t totally agree with Edholm, but I also don’t totally disagree. I like that Edholm put Bortles at #5 to go to Oakland, as opposed to other reports, saying that Bortles will go to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Oakland isn’t the best in the game, but they aren’t as bad as Jacksonville. What I don’t like about Edholm’s report is him saying that he wouldn’t use a Top 5 pick on Bortles. A lot of people are underestimating Bortles, and from Oakland’s point of view, they need a QB and Bortles is the best they can get!
-Brandon Lau