Teddy Bridgewater Rejoining With Detroit Lions Talked About Back In Summer: Report

Per a report by Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, Lions' backup Hendon Hooker said he thought back in the summer the Miami Northwestern head coach would be back with the team at some point

Detroit Lions quarterback Teddy Bridgewater waves to fans during warmups before the Denver Broncos game at Ford Field in Detroit on Saturday, Dec. 16, 2023. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

It looks like Miami Northwestern head coach Teddy Bridgewater returning to the NFL was a considered possibility even before the high school football season ever began.

Miami Northwestern Coach Teddy Bridgewater To Make NFL Return To Detroit Lions

According to a report by Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, Lions' backup quarterback Hendon Hooker said the signing of Bridgewater came as no surprise to him as it was something talked about back in the summer months.

"I figured Teddy was going to come back here this season," Hooker said, per Birkett's report. "I didn't know when. I knew when his season was over he was going to come back. I mean, we’ve been talking about it since the summer.

Definitely miss my guy just being in the room and leaning on him whenever Jared is doing his own thing. Still asking questions. He’s still my mentor at the end of the day, so any questions I have about life or this game of football or being a pro always seem to lean on Teddy."

Hooker has served as the backup quarterback for Detroit to Jared Goff, but sees Bridgewater as a mentor. Lions head coach Dan Campbell said to the media that Bridgewater brings a level of understanding of the offense and familiarity.

“So, I understand what it looks like, but it’s just a different world that we’re getting ready to talk into, and we just felt like this is the right thing to do, especially with somebody that I have a tremendous amount of trust with and for," Campbell said to the Pride of Detroit's Jeremy Reisman. He understands our offense well, the guys know him well, the coaches know him well, and he brings a certain level of comfort to us.”

Bridgewater is just a few weeks removed from leading his alma mater Miami Northwestern to the Class 3A state championship in a 41-0 rout of Jacksonville Raines. 

Earlier last week, Bridgewater confirmed on the NFL Network show The Insiders with Rapoport and Tom Pelissero that depending on the next couple of weeks, he could be signing on with an NFL franchise. That team became in fact was the latest one he was on, the Lions.

"That's the plan," Bridgewater responded to Rapoport and Pelissero on the NFL Network's last week's edition of the The Insiders. "My team knows that's the plan. We wanted to win a state championship and then coach goes back to the league, see what happens, and then come back February in the offseason, continue coaching high school football. We'll see how it plays out."

Teddy Bridgewater talks about potential NFL return

Bridgewater doesn't plan on leaving the Bulls whatsoever, as the head coach of the FHSAA Class 3A champions says he would be back in February to coaching.

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-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi