Now cleared to practice, when can the Vikings expect Bridgewater back on the field?

The quarterback has not suited up for the Minnesota Vikings in almost a season and a half since dislocating his knee in 2016.

The outlook did not seem promising back on August 30, 2016 when Teddy Bridgewater was rushed to a local Minnesota hospital with his left leg in an aircast. Thoughts of amputation were certainly not out of the question as the young Vikings quarterback was being transported to a nearby medical facility.

Fast forward to Monday morning when reports (first by ESPN’s Chris Mortensen) began to pour in about Bridgewater being cleared by his doctor to, once again, rejoin his Minnesota teammates out on the practice field.

A little later in the day, Mortensen also reported that the Vikings are expected to remove the quarterback from the team’s Physically Unable to Perform list by the team’s practice on Wednesday.

NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport added to the reports on Monday when he stated that Minnesota is also expected to add Bridgewater to the team’s active roster sometime this week or next week.

Monday’s reports are just the latest step in what has been a long road to recovery for Bridgewater since he first went down with his knee injury. Vikings fans have seen the quarterback go from performing some simple agility drills during the early parts of his rehab to dropping back and rolling out off to the side this summer while his teammates went through their training camp practices.

But now doctors and Minnesota’s staff, reportedly, believe that Bridgewater is pretty much ready to get back out on the field and help his team compete this season. So when could that possibly happen?

First things first, Case Keenum has been solid for Minnesota so far this year, but Bridgewater is the team’s starter once the team feels comfortable to put him back out there. Keenum is a backup quarterback in this league and nothing more.

This is not the time to figure out if Keenum can be the Vikings’ future signal caller over a quarterback who they selected with a first-round pick back in the 2014 draft.

With that being said, Minnesota has two more games before they have their bye in Week 9. First, at home against the Baltimore Ravens next Sunday and then a matchup with the winless Cleveland Browns across the pond in London, England.

If they feel okay with it, starting Bridgewater against the Browns may not be a bad idea. Cleveland is  allowing the sixth most points to their opponents so far this year and going against a lackluster defense like the Browns’ could be a good opportunity for the Vikings’ quarterback to work some of his rust off.

Minnesota Vikings

If not against Cleveland, Minnesota could have Bridgewater start in Week 10 on the road versus the Washington Redskins. Having a bye the week before would give the quarterback plenty of time to prepare and get on the same page with his offensive coaches and teammates before his first regular season action in almost two years.

However, Washington’s god-awful playing surface may deter Minnesota from bringing Bridgewater back in Week 10. The field inside the Redskins’ stadium has been the location for a number of serious injuries, including when former Vikings running back Adrian Peterson tore his ACL in 2011.

If the quarterback is not back on the field by Week 10, the following Sunday at home against the Los Angeles Rams has to be when Minnesota finally decides to put Bridgewater back in the starting lineup right?

Imagine how loud U.S. Bank Stadium would be that Sunday as the quarterback hits the field for his first regular season home game since 2015. Not a single person in the stands would be sitting down.

Next: Vikings' ups and downs from Week 6 win

Whether it is against the Browns, Redskins, Rams, or another team, Bridgewater is expected be back under center at some point this year. And when he finally is, the quarterback hopes to pick up where he left off in 2015 when he helped lead the Vikings to an NFC North title.