'The Good Place' will keep Blake Bortles references coming
You can take Blake Bortles out of Duval County, but you can't take him off NBC.
"The Good Place" creator Michael Schur still plans on dropping plenty of Bortles references in his show, according to Rolling Stone's Alan Sepinwall.
Asked Schur: "You really think, after 300 Blake Bortles references, we'd let the Bortles Era end without addressing it?"
The assumption is more Bortles jokes are incoming -- and that means more laughs for character Jason Mendoza (played by Manny Jacinto). His stereotypical Bortles fandom turned the NBC comedy into a mini-referendum on the Jaguars from its 2016 debut.
A contender was soon built around Bortles in Duval County. Showrunners expertly adjusted on the fly.
Jason made it back. Duval Til We Die and forever.#DTWD @nbcthegoodplace pic.twitter.com/zIsOfJcqAY
— #DUUUVAL (@Jaguars) January 7, 2018
We out here! #TheGoodPlace #Jaguars #DTWD
— The Good Place is taking it sleazy (@nbcthegoodplace) January 7, 2018
📷: @JoeMande pic.twitter.com/leE4FnL36H
We did it, J-town. pic.twitter.com/vmtiERvzNT
— The Good Place is taking it sleazy (@nbcthegoodplace) January 7, 2018
Then, as quickly as the show acclimated to a new-look AFC South, it was over. The Jags added Nick Foles as their new passer and released Bortles in a corresponding move.
Show writer and producer Megan Amram summed up the move for "The Good Place" fans.
Bortles 😢
— Megan Amram (@meganamram) March 11, 2019
Has anyone checked to see if Jason Mendoza is okay?
— The Good Place is taking it sleazy (@nbcthegoodplace) March 11, 2019
But Mendoza will be more than okay. Bortles landed in a literal good place -- with the NFC champion Rams. The show's cast could make its next adventure to the L.A. Coliseum.
We'll all find out in Season Four -- just steer clear of any manatees.