Teddy Bridgewater’s NFL run appears to be winding down, and the latest word out of Detroit points to retirement being the next step.
Speaking with the media, Lions head coach Dan Campbell said Bridgewater has told the team he is stepping away. Bridgewater signed with Detroit in the offseason after spending 2023 and 2024 with the team. He played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last year.
For Vikings fans, Bridgewater’s name still carries real weight. Minnesota took him in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft to replace Christian Ponder, and he immediately became one of the most recognizable young faces in the franchise.
In 30 games with the Vikings, he passed for 6,150 yards with 28 touchdowns and 22 interceptions, and he went 17-11 as a starter. He also made the Pro Bowl in 2015.
His career in Minnesota, though, is just as much about what went wrong as what went right. Bridgewater took a major hit to the head in one game and later suffered a devastating non-contact ACL injury in 2016 that sidelined him for nearly two years.
He kept his career going as a backup and later found more starting chances with the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos in 2020 and 2021. That stretch came after he went 5-0 as the New Orleans Saints’ starter in 2019. His time with Carolina and Denver was tougher, though, as he finished 11-18 as a starter over those two seasons.
Bridgewater’s final career numbers tell the full story: a 33-32 record, 15,182 passing yards, and 75 touchdowns against 47 interceptions.
Even with the ups and downs, he was widely appreciated in every locker room he entered. Fans in Minnesota showed that clearly in 2017, when he returned for his first game back from the ACL injury and received a standing ovation.
If this is the end, coaching looks like the most likely next stop. Bridgewater was coaching high school football before he came back to play in the NFL last year, and he is expected to look for another head coaching opportunity.
He may not come up often in league-wide quarterback debates, but in Minnesota, Bridgewater’s place is secure. He was a winner, a respected teammate, and a steady teacher of the game. And while he may not be throwing another NFL pass, Vikings fans can expect to see him back on the sidelines before long.
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