2) Bortles growing up faster than expected. Just two of the last five draft classes have failed to produce multiple top-10 quarterbacks. The first was 2013 (EJ Manuel, Geno Smith, etc.), which was clearly the worst of the five. And the second was 2014, which might wind up being close to 2012 as the best. Yes, Johnny Manziel's in that group. But the other three to go in the top 40 picks (Blake Bortles, Teddy Bridgewater and Derek Carr) are now regarded as long-term answers for their respective franchises. Carr is playing in this year's Pro Bowl, and my understanding is Bortles would be in, based on those who pulled out, if he hadn't broken his thumb in Week 17. One thing all four had in common? Each entered the league with the expectation to sit at the start, something that could be a benefit to this year's top QB draftees if they're scattered through the first round rather than stacked at the top. For Bortles, the real upshot of that circumstance was getting to work quietly on all the little things the Jaguars wanted him to focus on, without the demands that are placed on a starting quarterback. It allowed him to evolve naturally into the role, which he did quicker than expected. One coach told me in the leadup to the 2014 draft that Bortles showed everything you'd want at UCF, it just "took a lot of tape to get there." The implication, of course, was his penchant for the spectacular was held back to some degree by a need to learn to make more routine plays. "The first thing that jumped out about Blake to me -- he has no fear," Jags coach Gus Bradley told me the other day. "He comes out and he will challenge himself, he will take chances, and that was a really good part of it. So the big thought was, We've got this guy that will do that, really challenge himself and take some risk, and that's OK. He made some big plays. Now, we'll bring it down where it's less and less interceptions, and that sort of thing." And in Year 2, the numbers reflected some of that growth: Bortles threw for 4,428 yards and 35 touchdowns against 18 picks. Bradley also credited new OC Greg Olson and QBs coach Nathaniel Hackett with pushing the process along: "They really slowed the game down as much as possible for a second-year quarterback. And then, it allowed him to play with that freedom. With a young quarterback, it always comes down to good decision-making." The end result is a guy who's in a position to keep growing, because it's been such a methodical step-by-step process. Bortles is the rare top-five quarterback who has gotten the chance to learn that way. Bridgewater and Carr did, too. It seems the benefits are obvious, and something to bear in mind as the new crop prepares to enter the league.