Name: Teddy Bridgewater
Position: Quarterback
College: Louisville
How Teddy Bridgewater Fits Team Needs
General Manager Rick Spielman has quietly built a solid core of young and talented players on his roster. Building the foundation of his team through the draft, Spielman has cashed in on five first-round picks the last two years, along with having a high succession rate with his later round selections as well. Of the five, four of the picks have legitimate pro-bowl potential in Harrison Smith, Matt Khalil, Xavier Rhodes, and Cordarelle Patterson, with the jury still out on defensive tackle Sharif Floyd.
The glue between the cracks for the general has always been free agency, where he targets players like I target my women, young and cheap. Guys that are typically on his radar are players coming out of their rookie contract that are deemed “tier two” guys, based off where they rank with their peers. Captain Munnerlyn and Linval Joseph were two prime examples of that once again this offseason. Rarely will he cash in his loose change on a big name player like he did with Greg Jennings, and only when the position is completely depleted and dry, as was the receiver position after the Vikings dealt away Percy Harvin.
With a young and talented roster in place, the Vikings are hoping to have a quick turnaround thanks to a fresh start with their new coaching staff. Heavily targeted and big named guys like Mike Zimmer and Norv Turner were brought in to squeeze every drop of talent and potential out of a current group of underachievers, much like Jim Harbaugh did in San Francisco. Harbaugh took over for former coach Mike Singletary at the time, and improved an almost identical roster from 5-10 in 2010 to 13-3 in 2011. The Vikings are banking on similar success with Zimmer and his crew as they have faith that the team Spielman has built around them, has enough talent to win right now.
As high of a success percentage Spielman has had on his draft picks during his tenure, Vikings fans will be the first to point out his one major miss. Christian Ponder was selected with the 12th overall position three years ago, even though many scouts had him as a day-two prospect. The Vikings spent three long years building a team around Ponder who showed flashes of play that warranted his early selection, followed by games that left the fans with little to no hope for the young signal caller. After years of patience and numerous opportunities to succeed, it was clear during the middle of last season that the “Ponder Era” had come and gone, with a failing grade. After Ponder struggled to make the easiest of reads, progressions, and throws mid way through the season, Matt Cassel was flung into the starting lineup, where it was obvious he should have been from day one. Although he was far from perfect, Cassel grew a rapport quickly with Jennings and Patterson, helping the team stay competitive, winning three of their final five games.
With Cassel’s late season success and the Vikings lack of pursuing any other free agent quarterback, its safe to assume they fully expect Cassel will raise the Vikings offense to a high level under Norv Turner keeping the team competitive in the NFC North. Its an even safer assumption that the 31-year old quarterback isn’t the Vikings and new coaching staffs long term plan at the position. The Vikings opted not to resign Josh Freeman, who was the third wheel of the quarterback carousel, leaving just two active quarterbacks on the roster. Throw in the fact that Cassel is only under contract for one more season, and drafting a quarterback early in the 2014 draft becomes more of a reality than Nicholas Cage releasing another movie by the time you finish this sentence.
Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgwater certainly fits the bill of one of this years top prospects and warrants a top-10 pick. After going the entire 2013 season as the clear cut number one quarterback prospect, scouts now seem to be giving more attention to Blake Bortels, Johnny Manziel, and Derek Carr, making the case for Bridgewater falling to the Vikings at number eight a much more realistic possibility than people might think. If that scenario were to play out on draft day, drafting Bridgewater would give the Vikings their first franchise signal caller since Daunte Culpepper, and give Spielman a giant piece to his puzzle he’s been looking to fill in since his tenure began in Minnesota.
Impact as a Rookie
Coming from a pro-style offense, its clear Bridgewater will have the easiest transition from college to the pros in comparison to his peers, and is why he is deemed the most “NFL ready” of the bunch. Besides his ability to digest the NFL playbook quickly, Bridgewater’s on the field attributes also translates smoothly to the next level as well, as he was one of the nations leaders in every category when facing the blitz, which is something rookies tend to struggle with their first year.
Obviously a large part of his success will be influenced by the situation around him, including his weapons and coaching staff. However, with Adrian Peterson in the backfield, Bridgewater will rely on a heavy dose of play action passes where he excels, showing off efficient technique in his ball fakes, focusing on detail to sell the play. One area of his game he would be forced to improve on early, would be his deep ball accuracy and placement. Under offensive coordinator Norv Tuner, the Vikings offense will run a vertical attack, which puts a lot of pressure on the quarterback throwing a catchable ball deep down field, something Bridgewater has be scrutinized for.
What Teddy Bridgewater Does Well
Teddy is much more than another athletic passer who relies on his legs as much as his arm. Quite the opposite in fact, Teddy cashes his paychecks inside the pocket with his top notch pocket presence and keen awareness. A mature and intelligent prospect who clearly has a passion for the game, Bridgewater makes the game look easy on the field making big time throws, and off the field soaking up the playbook and breaking down film. He certainly has the smooth mobility to gain chunks of yardage outside the hashes with his feet to keep defenses guessing, but with his ability to make all the throws needed from inside the pocket, there aren’t many instances where you will see him flushed out of the pocket.
Again, some of the best pocket poise I’ve seen coming out of college, Bridgewater naturally runs through his progressions while keeping his eyes down the feild at his targets. A tool that can’t be taught, he uses his eyes to hold safeties in check while waiting for his receiver to find the soft spot before pulling the trigger. What scouts salivate over most is his ability stay comfortable and calm while blitzing defenders closing in on him trying to rattle his cage. When looking at the most successful current quarterbacks in the league, its clear that pocket passers are the ones who have been and always will be the most consistent, due to their ability to stay upright and avoid taking big hits. Bridgewater fits that bill as the most natural pocket passer in the draft, while showing off the talent to make all the throws needed in an NFL offense.
What Teddy Bridgewater Struggles With
With few flaws to his game its tough to find weaknesses when discussing Bridgewater, without sounding picky. His size is something that is quickly brought up under this category, as the 6-2 212 pounder is lankier and more fragile than teams ideally want when investing a top-10 pick. Throw in the fact that Bridgewater dealt with big hits and injuries throughout his college career (specifically to his ankle and wrist) and there aren’t many signs of reassurance. There are also some who complain about his release point, saying the ball is thrown far lower at his body than where it should be, letting the ball go at shoulder level instead of up and over his head.
The biggest and most obvious weakness to Bridgewaters game though is his accuracy on throws deep down field. With pin point accuracy on his short and intermediate routes, its clear when throwing the deep ball, he needs fine tuning on his placement and touch. Wether or not that is something that can be tweaked with proper coaching and adjustments through his mechanics remains to be seen, but as of now it remains Bridgewaters biggest weakness.