Jets Country

Jets Shouldn't Take Dolphins' Teddy Bridgewater Lightly

Just because the Dolphins are missing their starting quarterback on Sunday doesn't mean Miami can't explode on offense this week against New York.

Max Goodman

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With Tua Tagovailoa still in concussion protocol after a scary head injury, the Dolphins will turn to veteran Teddy Bridgewater against the Jets this week.

Bridgewater is a familiar face for Gang Green.

Not only did the veteran spend some time within the organization in 2018, before he was traded to the Saints, but he faced New York last season, leading the Broncos to a 26-0 shutout victory.

Now, the 29-year-old leads the dynamic Dolphins into MetLife Stadium in Week 5, looking to remain in first place in the AFC East.

Bridgewater replaced Tagovailoa on Thursday night after the southpaw's injury, completing 14 of 23 pass attempts for 193 passing yards. He had one touchdown and one interception.

Even if this will be his first start of the season with Miami, meaning there will be an adjustment for this high-flying offense and the Dolphins' playmakers, New York isn't taking this quarterback lightly. 

Take it from defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, who played with Bridgewater in New Orleans and at Louisville in college.

"Teddy is the ultimate competitor," Rankins told reporters on Monday. "He can run any offense, he can make all the throws, he can easily come in there and continue to keep that offense rolling and get the ball to their playmakers, which is what they're going to want to do. He's no slouch, there's not going to be a drop off, there's not going to be going into this week that he's a weak link for that team. He's a quarterback that's played at a high level, he's been a Pro Bowl quarterback in this league. He's done it at a high level and he's shown he can do it when given the opportunity. So for us, it's about going in there and treating him as we would treat any other high-level starting quarterback in this league."

New York has held up on defense against other talented quarterbacks in 2022. Facing wideouts Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill will be their biggest challenge of the year to date, though.

If the pass rush can make life miserable for Bridgewater in the pocket, and New York's cornerbacks (Sauce Gardner, D.J. Reed and more) can continue to shine this season, then the Jets will have a good shot to jump above .500 and hang with this talented opponent. If not, Bridgewater may have a field day at MetLife Stadium, taking over for an offense that's averaged 291.8 passing yards per game (third-best in the NFL through Week 4).

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Jets for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. He also covers the New York Yankees, publisher  of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Yankees site, Inside The Pinstripes. Before starting out with SI, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. While at school, Goodman gathered valuable experience as an anchor and reporter on NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. Goodman previously interned at MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman and connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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