Biggest Headlines of Day 1 of Jacksonville Jaguars OTAs

It's only been one day, but there has been no shortage of news coming out of the Jacksonville Jaguars' organized team activities. OTAs typically produce news, but among absences, player statements and signs of improvement, there is a lot to talk about.

The Jaguars' next step toward the 2015 season began Tuesday with the first team practices finally getting underway. The awful, tantalizing stretch of the offseason isn't easy, but updates from OTAs make the pain bearable. 

Most of the news coming out of the Jaguars has been positive. Going off various reports, the players and the organization as a whole seem to be in the right mood and are motivated to make progress this offseason.

The Jaguars don't allow specifics of OTAs to be reported by the media, but there is still enough coming out to get a good idea of where the Jaguars are right now. It can be a pain, but it's nice to have an idea of what's happening.

OTAs are where the team can finally come together as a whole to work, and that appears to be happening without too many issues. It may not be perfect, but a true NFL roster is beginning to take shape.

Blake Bortles Showing Improvement

John Raoux/Associated Press

As with most young quarterbacks, QB Blake Bortles has spent a lot of time working on his mechanics coming up to OTAs, and it shows. The main criticism of Bortles coming out of college was his technique, and seeing him improve is a great sign of the work he puts in and how he could improve in the future.

According to Jaguars.com's John Oehser, when Bortles was asked about his offseason work with quarterback mentor Tom House, Bortles said:

"

One thing that was really cool working with those guys, was they kind of get you to do self-correction. They give you all these tools and say "Here’s how to fix it" … when it goes wrong, here’s a checklist of things to go through and see where you were wrong at. So, I thought that was cool.

"

House is a renowned name thanks to a long career of working with various QBs, and seeing Bortles take away something to help him in the future along with the lessons in mechanics will be key to his composure and overall improvement.

Head coach Gus Bradley approved of his progress, saying, via Oehser: "He’s not there yet, but we’ve just seen really good improvement. I like what he did in the offseason." If Bradley is able to notice improvement from his broad perspective as a head coach, it makes his progress that much more validated.

As Bradley said, Bortles still has some work to do, but his work with House appears to be making an immediate impact. It's not going to be an easy road for Bortles, but his performance today is a promising sign that he can handle it.

Injured Marqise Lee and Others Miss Day 1

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

Marqise Lee, among others, missed practice due to injury Tuesday. Lee was injury-plagued last season, and it's concerning to see he's still struggling with injury to start this offseason. It's not easy to stay healthy, but this is definitely not the start Lee was looking for.

According to Jaguars.com's Oehser, Lee recently injured his knee in Phase 2 of the offseason, the phase before OTAs (Phase 3). Coach Bradley said this about Lee: “We’re going to be smart with him and where he’s at. I know he wants to get back, but we’re being smart with him."

Lee's an incredible talent, and Bradley and the Jaguars are making the right move by being cautious. One injury can quickly turn into another or into a worse situation, and letting Lee take his time is the best action going forward. 

Elsewhere, Roy Miller, Sen'Derrick Marks, Damian Copeland, Josh Evans and Dante Fowler Jr. missed practice. Miller, Marks and Fowler were out on knee-related injuries—Marks due to his ACL tear last season and Fowler obviously because of his recent ACL tear.

Evans is going to miss a few weeks due to shoulder surgery, and Damian Copeland has an issue with his quadriceps. Allen Robinson did show up to practice, but his foot injury from last season has him reduced to running straight and not much else.

Most of the players, save for Fowler, will likely be nearly ready for the mandatory minicamp June 16-18, including Marks. According to Oehser, Bradley said Marks is "a little bit ahead of schedule."

Having all the players ready for the mandatory minicamp would be a great recovery for the Jaguars, especially considering the importance of players such as Marks, Robinson and Miller.

Offense Holds Its Own

John Raoux/Associated Press

The Jaguars offense came ready to play Tuesday and impressed coach Bradley and the rest of the staff. It may have been going up against a hindered defense, but apparently its work impressed nonetheless.

According to News4Jax.com, Bradley said this about the offense: "For them to come out and execute like they did was great. You didn't see many busts. I thought it was pretty good. Definitely something to build on."

The offense was the weaker side of the ball, partly due to lack of talent but mostly due to inexperience. However, many members of the offense now have a year under their belts and have been improving.

The offense, which is the youngest in the NFL at an average age of 23.91, according to the Philly Voice's Jimmy Kempski and highlighted by Big Cat Country's Alfie Crow, holding its own against a talented—although incomplete—defense is one of the best updates of the offseason.

It was never going to be easy for an offense as young as that, but the members seem to be improving together faster than expected. That's not to say that there won't be any more growing pains, but the offense's impressive performance on Tuesday is a mark of what could happen in the future.

Chris Clemons Absent from OTAs

Rob Foldy/Getty Images

Almost unsurprisingly, defensive end Chris Clemons missed the opening day of OTAs. Clemons, who missed the first day of OTAs last season, was not present, and that's not really a big deal.

First and foremost, OTAs are voluntary, save for the June 16-18 minicamp. Clemons has his personal way of preparing for the season, and it's assuring that coach Bradley and the staff understand this as well.

According to Jaguars.com's Oehser, Bradley said this about Clemons' absence: “When he shows up, as long as he’s ready to go and he’s in shape, that’s all that matters. We’re not changing the defense. He knows the defense. He knows the scheme. We all have confidence in him."

Of course, it'd be preferable to have the entire team in attendance, but at 33 years old, it's not like Clemons has much to learn. He's a guy who most likely won't be in Jacksonville after this season, so allowing him to handle his offseason in his fashion is fine.

As long as Clemons prepares himself correctly and is ready when he has to be, there's really not much to complain about. Clemons delivered last season, and it's fair to trust him to handle his business this season.

Julius Thomas and Marcedes Lewis Finding Their Way

Gary McCullough/Associated Press

The combination of Marcedes Lewis and Julius Thomas could be the best tight end duo in the league, and they've gotten off to a good start in the first days of OTAs. Exactly how the two will split playing time hasn't been decided, but they're both impressing all the same.

For Thomas, it was the first practice with the Jaguars, and all reports are saying he handled it well, including Bortles. According to the team's Twitter account (h/t Oehser), Bortles said, "It's a good group of tight ends. ... Julius looked really good."

It's a small comment, but that along with general positivity surrounding Thomas shows that he's transitioning well. Thomas' showing his skill and the small action of making sure he showed up for voluntary OTAs make any concerns about his work ethic a little less prevalent.

The 10-year veteran Lewis is also handling the new situation at TE well, too. Lewis has had a rough past couple of seasons due to nagging injuries, but he's ready to take on a new role in 2015.

When asked about his new role, Lewis said, “Nothing changes inside here,” Lewis said, pointing to his chest. “Whatever they see fit, that’s what I’ll be doing. It’s still early. When we get pads on, we’ll figure that out, too.” 

It's not a certain future for either TE, but the fact that both are working hard and ready for the new challenges in front of them is reassuring.

All stats were provided by ESPN.com unless otherwise stated. Predraft information courtesy of NFLDraftScout.com and NFL.com.

Evan Reier is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report covering the Jacksonville Jaguars. Follow Evan on Twitter at @evanreier.