Blaine Gabbert

Blaine Gabbert (born October 15, 1989) is an American football quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Missouri Tigers before leaving early for the 2011 NFL draft after his junior year. Jacksonville selected him in the first round with the 10th pick overall.

Early years

Gabbert was born in Ballwin, Missouri and attended Parkway West High School, where he played high school football. He recorded 623 passing yards and five touchdowns as a senior, despite an injured foot that limited him to four games. As a junior, he posted 1,523 yards and 20 touchdowns (on 119-of-231 passing) and also added another 458 yards rushing and 8 TDs. In his sophomore season, he threw for approximately 1,100 yards and 11 touchdowns as a first-year starter. He was named the number one quarterback heading to college by pro college scouts.

College career

Coming out of high school in 2008, Gabbert was considered a major college recruitment prospect. Rated as a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Gabbert was listed as the number 1 pro-style quarterback in the nation.^[1] He initially gave a verbal commitment to the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers, but rethought his decision after head coach Bill Callahan was fired.^[2] He eventually committed to the University of Missouri.

Missouri coach Gary Pinkel decided not to redshirt Gabbert his freshman year, but instead play him as the third-string quarterback behind Chase Daniel and Chase Patton.^[3] Gabbert had a strong debut in 2009, throwing for 313 yards with three touchdowns in the air and another one on the ground against the Illinois Fighting Illini in the annual Arch Rivalry. In January 2011, Gabbert announced that he would forgo his senior year to enter the 2011 NFL Draft.^[4]

College stats

Professional career

On April 28, 2011 Gabbert was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the first round of the 2011 NFL draft with the 10th overall pick. Jacksonville traded up six spots with the Washington Redskins to select Gabbert.^[7] On July 28, 2011, Gabbert officially signed his contract to play for the Jacksonville Jaguars. The deal is worth $12 million over 4 years.^[8]

Gabbert played in his first NFL regular season game on September 18, 2011 against the New York Jets. He was then named starter against the Carolina Panthers on September 25, 2011 beginning the Gabbert era of Jacksonville football.

Gabbert struggled in his rookie season. He was sacked 40 times, third most of any quarterback in the league. He fumbled 14 times, most in the league by a quarterback.^[9] His 50.8% completion percentage was second-worst in the league for passers with more than 200 attempts (ahead of only Tim Tebow's 46.5%). His 5.4 yards per attempt was last in the league among qualifying passers, as was his 65.4 passer rating.^[10] Football Outsiders calculated that Gabbert's 2011 season was "with the fifth worst season we've ever measured" in aggregate value. ^[11]

References

External links

• Missouri Tigers football bio
• College Statistics at totalfootballstats.com
• ESPN Profile
• Jacksonville Jaguars Bio