The Minnesota Vikings continued their search for a franchise quarterback on Wednesday by watching quarterback Blake Bortles during Central Florida’s pro day.
Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer, offensive coordinator Norv Turner and general manager Rick Spielman were on hand to watch Bortles Wednesday. The strong consensus amongst those who attended is that Bortles looked solid during the workout.
NFL.com analyst Mike Mayock said he thought Bortles’ workout “looked like it was supposed to look.”
“Really good arm strength, I wouldn’t say elite,” Mayock said. “I would say really good.”
Bortles began the workout with a series of touch throws, some of which hung, according to CBS Sports. The majority of misses during the workout were drops or overthrows on deep balls.
CBS said velocity was not an issue for Bortles. The ball doesn’t necessarily explode out of his hand, but when he decided to let it rip, the ball sizzled through the air. According to the report, several of his best throws on the day were intermediate targets down the seam and to the sidelines.
NFL Draft analyst Tony Pauline reports that Bortles “met extensively” with the Vikings, Texans, Jaguars and Raiders prior to his pro-day workout.
The latest mock draft from Don Banks, which was released Tuesday, has Bortles going first overall to the Texans. The Vikings are projected to take Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater with the No. 8 pick. Bridgewater reportedly underwhelmed at his pro day earlier this week.
The Vikings are clearly looking the quarterback position closely. They were at Bridgewater’s workout on Monday and Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron’s pro day workout last week. According to the Star Tribune, they will also attend Johnny Manziel’s pro day on March 27.
After watching games on coaches film of Bortles from this past college football season, Sports Illustrated’s Greg Bedard says Bortles “possesses all of the traits teams look for in a franchise quarterback” and “he has the highest ceiling of any QB in this draft.”
Still though, Bortles isn’t ready to be a starter in the NFL, according to Bedard.
A report from NFL.com calls Bortles a prototypical drop-back passer with intriguing upside. Former Vikings offensive coordinator Brian Billick thinks Bortles can become a franchise quarterback and he doesn’t see any negatives.
Sports Illustrated just released an excellent feature video on Bortles. It provides an inside look at gritty approach he takes to the game.
