The Minnesota Vikings spawned some optimism regarding Teddy Bridgewater by releasing video this week of their injured quarterback throwing during offseason workouts.

Certainly, it is encouraging to see Bridgewater throwing in drills.

But it does not mean he will make a full return in 2017 any more than the Vikings not picking up his fifth-year option meant he won’t be with the team in 2018.


That action fostered talk Bridgewater’s career was in jeopardy since the team wouldn’t lock up their former franchise quarterback for a fifth season.

The truth is somewhere in the middle of the two extremes.

Bridgewater still has a long way to go. The video doesn’t prove anything, but it definitively shows progress having been made in the nine months since he suffered a left knee dislocation that included tearing his ACL and other major ligaments.

In viewing the video, his left knee looks stiff as he plants, has a stomping gate that fails to dampen through the knee, does not flex/sit down with the knee as he sets to throw and does not fully shift weight to step into his throw on follow through. Footwork and balance are key for a quarterback and he is not there yet, but this is a good start. He will need to show more than this including lateral movement before being game ready.


Of significant note, Bridgewater does not appear to have any nerve damage, as can happen with knee dislocations. (See Jaylon Smith.) Bridgewater also wears an ACL-type brace that is commonly used after ligament reconstruction surgery. I anticipate he will always wear the brace, but this should not be an issue as some QBs wear one routinely to protect the lead leg.

Reports after a doctor’s visit Wednesday revealed Bridgewater has only just received permission from his surgeon to begin moving side to side. Again, this indicates good progress but confirms how there is still a long road ahead.

If Bridgewater were a cornerback, his horrific dislocation likely would have ended his career. But as a quarterback, he should be able to return even if his knee is not 100 percent.

He still will be more mobile than many quarterbacks, just not the same as before. It is likely, barring extreme improvement in the next two months, Bridgewater will start camp on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list and will need to make steady progress to play in ’17. He has a reasonable chance to become a top quarterback again, but it will be hard to become a premiere runner again.


When his injury happened, it was clear the situation was dire as paramedics were dispatched, as opposed to a traditional ambulance, and he was rushed across town past several hospitals to a trauma center.

The Vikings initial press release acknowledged the severity of the injury but cleverly downplayed it by calling it “ACL and other structures.” That made some think it was mostly an ACL tear. The reality was he tore at least two major ligaments and likely three (which I detailed at the time), and the team knew right away there was no way Bridgewater would play in 2016 and no guarantee for 2017. Thus, the trade to acquire Sam Bradford was more than just for a 2016 starter but for 2017 insurance.

The decision to not pick up Bridgewater’s option was a financial decision, not medical one. The Vikings will still get him for his fifth season, just cheaper, as his contract tolled during the period of his injury.

Bridgewater’s recovery is nowhere near complete, but it is also not going to be career ending. He will return to play, but there is no way to ever be 100 percent.


As is often the case, between positive video and negative reports, the truth is somewhere in the middle.