Sometimes the fish can just sit there it seems and not take good baits sitting on the sea floor. If the tides are slack and there is not any current flow the fish dont seem to follow a scent trail to the food you call bait. Other times there can be a current flowing the opposite direction as the top water that effects the boat. Either one can happen in the same day ......
Sometimes the jig with a strip of bait can wake something into bighting.... heres a clip of a halibut that picked up the jig a couple of times and spit it out it seemed. Finally it was hooked and we kept it as we wanted to go home. Its always a different day and conditions change so you have to deal with the variables, this day it rained all day. Daves purple jig is used here and is a 12 ouncer. Good day. ;)
https://youtu.be/8nddWGV3SEM
Neat to get to see your boat on step... Jeff
Rough day. Poor guys had to fish in the rain to limit out on butts. Boo hoo. :'( Dominick