Blaine Gabbert's Status As Biggest Jaguars Draft Bust Ever Is Unchallenged

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars have had some big hits in the NFL Draft, such as current stars like Trevor Lawrence, Josh Hines-Allen, and Travon Walker. But there have also been some big misses.

But for all of the recent misses like Taven Bryan and C.J. Henderson and the classic misses like Justin Blackmon and Luke Joeckel, there is still one Jaguars draft bust that remains unchallenged as the worst-ever in franchise history: Blaine Gabbert.

blaine gabbert jaguars — Sep 9, 2012; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blaine Gabbert (11) runs during the third quarter against the Minnesota Vikings at the Metrodome. The Vikings defeated the Jaguars 26-23 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Blaine Gabbert Era

There are certainly a number of other contenders worth taking the title of the biggest bust in franchise history. And, of course, the context of each player's career and exactly why they were busts is important when considering the worst draft pick the Jaguars have ever made. But considering the Jaguars drafted Gabbert with the hopes of him becoming a franchise quarterback, he became the furthest thing possible.

Gabbert proved to be one of the more ineffective starting quarterbacks not just in franchise history, but in NFL history at large. Pro Football Focus recently looked at the worst seasons in the entire PFF-grading era, and Gabbert carriest the distinction as the worst-ever season at quarterback in terms of PFF grades.

"Gabbert’s 2011 season stands out, but not in a good way. His 31.2 overall PFF grade is the lowest by over nine grading points in PFF history. Across 475 dropbacks, Gabbert posted a solid 3.0% big-time throw rate but added a 4.2% turnover-worthy play rate. Also, his 62.2% adjusted completion percentage is the worst ever for a qualifier," PFF said.

"The 2006 season was also a notorious one, featuring two quarterbacks to produce sub-46.5 grades: J.P. Losman (40.4) and Rex Grossman (46.3). Although Matthew Stafford just won MVP, his rookie campaign was a real issue with a 45.2 overall mark in 2009. Recent seasons have also produced disappointing years in the form of 2014 Blake Bortles (46.7), 2018 Josh Rosen (49.1) and 2019 Kyle Allen (49.7)."

Even with those kinds of seasons and quarterbacks joining him, the rookie version of Gabbert was enough for the Jaguars and the rest of the NFL to recognize that they had gone wrong with the pick. Within a few years, Gabbert would be on his third head coach in as many years and would be sent to the San Francisco 49ers for a cup of coffee.

Gabbert went on to put together a nice career as a veteran backup quarterback, but his status as a potential NFL starter was derailed thanks to a rookie season that has gone down as one of the worst a quarterback has ever had. There are plenty of other busts in Jaguars' history, but few others were quite all-time bad the way Gabbert managed to be.

This wasn't all his fault, of course. The Jaguars were mismanged and were one of the NFL's worst franchises at the start of the 2010s, and Gabbert landed in a losing situation from the jump. But is there any denying that the Jaguars would have been better off taking almost any other player in the draft back in 2011?

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