Official: Teddy Bridgewater Is Coming Out of Retirement
The Minnesota Vikings are cruising and sit near the top of the league with an exciting 13-2 record after winning their last eight games. However, Kevin O’Connell’s club ranks second in its own division, trailing the Lions due to the tiebreaker. Detroit will get a reinforcement. Former Vikings QB Teddy Bridgewater is expected to sign with the NFC North rivals.
Official: Teddy Bridgewater Is Coming Out of Retirement
A beloved figure wherever he goes, Bridgewater retired last offseason and moved on to coach his former high school, Miami Northwestern HS, in Miami, Florida. In his first season, he took the school to a 12-2 record and won the championship after a dominant playoff run.
Mission accomplished. As the next season is months away, the coach decided to return to the NFL to hunt a ring as a player once again. A tweet a few weeks ago ignited the rumors.
On Thursday, NFL insider Ian Rapoport revealed on X: “Comeback: High school state championship-winning coach and NFL QB Teddy Bridgewater is coming out of retirement and is expected to sign with the Lions, sources tell The Insiders. Bridgewater appeared on NFL Network and revealed his plans to play again. Back to Detroit.”
Detroit was his last employer in the NFL; he spent the 2023 season as Jared Goff’s backup. Now, he returns to a familiar team. It remains to be seen whether he can usurp 2023 third-round selection Hendon Hooker and become Goff’s QB2 again, but the fact that he knows most of his teammates and coaches surely helps him get acclimated quickly.
His time in Minnesota remains a huge “what if” story. The start of his career looked promising once the rookie stepped onto the field (during the injury-related absence of starter Matt Cassel) without suspended franchise player Adrian Peterson taking the pressure off him. In 13 games (12 starts), Bridgewater tabulated 2,919 passing yards, 14 passing touchdowns, and 12 interceptions while adding roughly 200 yards and another score on the ground.
In his sophomore season, Minnesota’s number five racked up 3,231 passing yards, 14 touchdowns (plus three rushing), and nine picks. Pedestrian numbers were enough to guide the Vikings into the postseason with the league’s leading rusher, Peterson, and Mike Zimmer’s emerging defense. He needed a game-manager, and Bridgewater was just that. A match made in heaven.
The young quarterback reached a crossroads. Would he stay the type of passer who doesn’t lose his team any games but also can’t carry them to victories – a game manager – or would he emerge? Early signs in the preseason in 2016 were encouraging until disaster hit.
The infamous knee injury that no Vikings fan will ever forget. The starting quarterback destroyed his knee because of a non-contact injury in practice, costing him his 2016 season but, fortunately, not his career. Regardless, the moment derailed his time in Minnesota.
Subsequently, the Vikings acquired Sam Bradford to skip the ship in 2016. Bradford’s knee injury allowed Case Keenum’s magical run in 2017. Bridgewater returned in 2017 but only received some honorary snaps.
In the 2018 offseason, all three passers left, and Kirk Cousins entered the building in the Twin Cities. For Bridgewater, an odyssey began. He signed with the Jets but was traded to New Orleans just a few weeks later to become Drew Brees’ backup.
After two years and some solid performances whenever Brees was forced to sit out a game, Bridgewater started for the Panthers in 2020 and the Broncos in 2021 before heading to Miami to be Tua Tagovailoa’s backup.
The quarterback played in 30 games with the Vikings, starting in 28. He threw for 6,150 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 22 interceptions. He has produced 75 passing TDs and 15,120 yards in his career.
Bridgewater is 32, which is not old at all for a quarterback. To see the field, though, injuries would have to hit Detroit even more than they already have.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt