Gabbert played with toe injury in 2011

In an interview with Gene Frenette, Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blaine Gabbert revealed that he played “nearly all” of the 2011 season with an unspecified toe injury.

This information was previously unknown to the public, and may or may not explain Gabbert’s questionable footwork last season, his first campaign in the NFL.

At one point, he was listed on weekly injury reports with bruised ribs.

Gabbert had an underwhelming rookie season for the Jaguars, completing 50.8% of his passes for 2,214 yards, 12 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, posting a 65.4 quarterback rating.

This has led many to label him as a “bust”, which is premature if you ask me; Gabbert has only had one season to play, a season where it probably would have been best for him to sit behind a more experienced quarterback.

But because of David Garrard’s departure, that didn’t happen so instead, he was thrown into the deep end basically from the get-go.

For what it’s worth, John Elway didn’t exactly set the world alight in his rookie season. And he didn’t turn out too badly. Whether Gabbert will go on to achieve success like Elway, or flounder like, say, Ryan Leaf (touchy subject right now, I know) remains to be seen.