Lions Need to See if Bridgewater Still 'Got It'

Dan Campbell explains Detroit Lions interest in Teddy Bridgewater.

With the signing of Teddy Bridgewater, the Detroit Lions have secured an experienced backup behind starter Jared Goff. 

As he enters his 10th NFL season, Bridgewater has already started 65 games. Six of those starts came in a two-year span where he shared the New Orleans Saints sideline with Dan Campbell. 

Now the head coach of the Detroit Lions, Campbell sought out the veteran signal-caller after forming a strong impression of him during their time together. 

In particular, Bridgewater went 5-0 in 2019 when starter Drew Brees went down with an injury. 

"I was with him. When you're with somebody for two years, you get a really good feel of what they're capable of. The way they're wired, the way he thinks," Campbell explained. "So I've seen him work, I've seen him run the offense, I've seen him in critical moments, I've seen him develop young talent, young receivers. You know, we lost  Brees, he goes 5-0. He went in there and kept the ship afloat. He kept the heading right where we needed it and that means a lot to me and that's all we need. To me, that's one of the reasons I wanted him here."

The Lions now have four quarterbacks on roster. Aside from Goff and Bridgewater, there's incumbent backup Nate Sudfeld and rookie Hendon Hooker along with UDFA Adrian Martinez.

While Bridgewater and Sudfeld do battle for the backup spot, Hooker continues to rehab from a knee injury suffered in college. 

"I think that's what this is about," Campbell stated. "The guy that's gonna give you the best chance to win a game if you're gonna need them. You may have to play a little different, that's fine, every game's different. You have to be a little more conservative or a little more aggressive in different areas of the game and the phases. Certainly, we know, that brings a different level of competition in. Teddy's got skins on the wall, he's done it, and we need to see if he's still got it. That's all." 

While Campbell believes the new veteran passer will have a strong impact on the rookie, he also thinks Bridgewater can help the young receiving corps that Detroit has at its disposal. 

The third-year coach recalled seeing the passer take his receivers onto the field prior to game day and outline the game-plan. He'd identify coverages and consult with the wideouts on routes and other aspects of their game. 

The Lions don't anticipate having Bridgewater on the practice field until next week. While the staff expects the veteran to take some time adapting to the verbiage of Ben Johnson's offense, his previous experience in a number of schemes should bode well for him. 

"The bad news is it will be new terminology for him, so it'll take a minute for him just to get up to what we're saying," Campbell said. "The good news is Teddy's been in every system you can imagine right now. I mean, he's been through, I don't know, probably six different verbiages, offenses, so he'll know the concepts. ... Listen, Teddy's a pro, he's gonna study the heck out of it. He'll pick it up, he's gonna pick it up pretty fast so I'm not concerned. But it'll take a little bit here."