Vikings trading for Teddy Bridgewater suggested by NFL analyst
By Adam Patrick
After throwing for 4,265 yards and 35 touchdowns to go along with a 105.0 passer rating in 2020, most would assume that the Minnesota Vikings would want to stick with Kirk Cousins as their starting quarterback for next season.
But Cousins has been in the rumor mill recently, and it has cast plenty of doubt about his future with the Vikings. Nothing has come out yet about Minnesota looking to unload their starting quarterback this offseason, but there has been some chatter about other teams looking to possibly make a deal for the veteran signal-caller.
So let’s just pretend a team actually sends an enticing offer to acquire Cousins, and the Vikings end up agreeing to a trade. If this happens, then who would start under center for Minnesota next season?
If Kirk Cousins is gone, would the Minnesota Vikings bring back an old friend?
Let’s say the trade the Vikings agree to that involves Cousins doesn’t include a starting quarterback in the return package. What would Minnesota’s plan at quarterback be for the 2021 campaign then?
Well, ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio believes the Vikings could attempt to bring back the first signal-caller the team drafted after Mike Zimmer became the team’s head coach in 2014.
On Tuesday, Florio suggested that if Minnesota needed a starting quarterback for next season, they could make a trade with the Carolina Panthers to bring Teddy Bridgewater back to the Twin Cities.
Florio backed up his suggestion by saying that the move would be “locally popular,” and that plenty of Vikings fans “would welcome,” a trade for Bridgewater.
This idea probably would have been more believable after the conclusion of last season when Bridgewater was coming off a few impressive performances as a member of the New Orleans Saints. But this happening in 2021 seems extremely unlikely.
Bridgewater started in 15 games for the Panthers this past season and he was only able to help the team finish with five wins. In his 15 starts, the former Minnesota quarterback threw 3,733 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions.
If the Vikings are ever going to agree to a trade that includes Cousins, their plan to find a new starting quarterback before the 2021 season should not be something that has Bridgewater ending up back in Minnesota.
As much as some Vikings fans might like to see it happen (like Florio), don’t expect Bridgewater to be back in purple and gold for next season.