As the seasons officially transition from summer to fall, so do the Vikings to a new signal caller. The youngest member on the Vikings roster, Teddy Bridgewater does not show his youth often with his unwavering demeanor.
Tim Yotter of Viking Update writes about the common opinion of Bridgewater among his teammates and coaches:
Teddy Bridgewater*'s composure continues to impress his teammates, although not many were surprised.
Teammates and coaches have been seeing Bridgewater's even-keeled demeanor since the day he arrived at Winter Park following his selection at the end of the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft.
"I remember the first preseason game I asked Teddy whether he was nervous or not," backup Christian Ponder said. "Of course he said no and I thought, 'He's just a liar.' The guy doesn't get nervous. The guy has a ton of poise and played extremely well. You expect to continue the next game and so on." *
View exclusive images shot by the team photographer from the third game of 2014 as the Vikings took on the Saints in New Orleans.
After a strong preseason, Bridgewater saw his first action of the regular season Sunday against the New Orleans Saints when starter Matt Cassel suffered several broken bones in his left foot early in the second quarter. Bridgewater completed 12 of 20 passes for 150 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions.
His pocket presence especially stood out to several teammates, although they saw the same thing from him in offseason practices and in the preseason.
"I think he's a pretty composed individual anyway. He always has been around here. Nothing really flusters him," head coach Mike Zimmer said. "He's always been great in blitz period, two-minute period, all the pressure situations we have him in. And I thought – and, obviously, that's a tough situation to go in, you're down 13 on the road against a good football team in the Superdome. But he handled it very well."*
Bridgewater will have his first opportunity to have a week to prepare and start a game against the Falcons on Sunday at the friendly confines of the TCF Bank Stadium.
Quick Hitters
- Munnerlyn disagrees with penalty call on 'suplex' maneuver on QB Brees, via Derek Wetmore of 1500 ESPN.
- Brian Hall of the FOX Sports North sums up the Vikings injuries here.
