The Minnesota Vikings are an up-and-coming NFL team, but what if their young quarterback Teddy Bridgewater doesn’t continue to develop with the offense?
Teddy Bridgewater is one of those quarterbacks that will always have critics. Whether it is his struggles with the deep ball or tendency to play it safe, the young passer needs to find his groove in the NFL and help out an offense based on the run.
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But what happens if Bridgewater doesn’t take another step forward? What should the team do then? And what options would the Minnesota Vikings have at that point to continue working toward their goal of a Super Bowl?
What the team would do in this situation was a question posed to a roundtable of NFC North beat writers on ESPN. Representatives from the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, and Green Bay Packers weighed in on Ben Goessling’s inquiry of the following topic:
"“Fill in the blank: If Bridgewater doesn’t take a step forward and become a top-tier QB in his third season, the Vikings should _____?”"
First up to answer the question was Rob Demovsky, who covers the Green Bay Packers for ESPN. Here is what he said:
"“Keep trying to develop the rest of the roster. The Vikings are going to be a playoff team, given their running game and style of defense,” Demovsky wrote. “Even if Bridgewater has reached his ceiling, the focus should be on making sure the Vikings have the best running game and a championship-level defense around him.”"
Up next was Chicago Bears beat writer Jeff Dickerson. His outlook is brighter than Demovsky’s about Bridgewater’s future with the Vikings.
"“Keep him. There is a massive shortage of dependable quarterbacks in the NFL. Is Bridgewater in the top tier? No. But he has done enough to convince me the Vikings can win with him.”"
Finally, Michael Rothstein who reports on the Detroit Lions put his two cents in on what to do in his situation:
"“Stick with him because Bridgewater is still young and has a lot of potential,” Rothstein said. “You have a capable starting quarterback, and it’s better to be in that situation than what the New York Jets, Cleveland Browns or even Houston Texans have. Bridgewater has a definite future.”"
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At this point, a poor year from Teddy Bridgewater shouldn’t be enough to cause the Minnesota Vikings to throw in the towel on developing the young quarterback. While he has areas of his game that need improvement, the other options out there are quite ugly at this point. Plus, the team would have to give the farm to either draft a top prospect and gamble again or sign/trade for an established passer. Either way, it appears as though the team is tied to Bridgewater for the future, for better or for worse.