The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

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The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by Mothman »

An interesting read from rom Matthew Coller of ESPN 1500:

http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2017/ ... rterbacks/
Sam Bradford will very likely be the 2017 opening day starter for the Minnesota Vikings. There have been no updates from the team on the status of Teddy Bridgewater’s knee, but all indications are that his severe injury will not be healed and in game shape by next September. So the picture is clear for the start of next season. Looking any farther down the road at the Vikings’ quarterback situation, however, is where things get pretty foggy.
Perhaps I missed it but I don't think Coller addressed what I consider the elephant in the room: it's possible that neither Bradford or Bridgewater represent the Vikngs future for the QB position beyond 2017.

It seems clear to me that the job should be Bradford's to lose going forward. The level of optimism out there surrounding Bridgewater continues to surprise me but maybe he'll be able to come back strong.

I was reading an article by Kevin Siefert this morning in which he wrote that the Vikings will likely pick up Bridgewater's 5th year option in May. That surprised me
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by IrishViking »

I was about to ask. Is there any information Bridgewater's CURRENT condition? All I ever see is long term stuff but is he doing well now? Is he exceeding is PT expectations? Is he ahead, behind, etc.
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by Mothman »

IrishViking wrote:I was about to ask. Is there any information Bridgewater's CURRENT condition? All I ever see is long term stuff but is he doing well now? Is he exceeding is PT expectations? Is he ahead, behind, etc.
They talked about it a bit during the broadcast of yesterday's game but I haven't seen or heard anything very concrete on the subject. The actual status of his injury and recovery is being kept private.
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by IrishViking »

Mothman wrote: They talked about it a bit during the broadcast of yesterday's game but I haven't seen or heard anything very concrete on the subject. The actual status of his injury and recovery is being kept private.

I know it is generally a private thing and Bridgewater has every right to that and that's fine, I just have to believe that if he was doing really well they would parading that stuff around like a hero dog. The fact that they are keeping quiet and touting Bradford loudly makes me believe a recovery to the point he could play football again is probably not realistic :(
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by mansquatch »

I'm not surprised. TB has the leadership qualities the team wants. He is on the sidelines all the time with his teammates. Whether he has the physical skills remains to be seen, but it is highly unlikely they'd find someone at the cost they'll pay TB. To me it makes sense from a cap perspective right now. Whether that is the case in a year or two remains to be seen.

IMO, this is insurance more than anything else. This position IMO is probably the least interesting on the offense going into this off season.
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by Raptorman »

Mothman wrote:An interesting read from rom Matthew Coller of ESPN 1500:

http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2017/ ... rterbacks/
Perhaps I missed it but I don't think Coller addressed what I consider the elephant in the room: it's possible that neither Bradford or Bridgewater represent the Vikngs future for the QB position beyond 2017.

It seems clear to me that the job should be Bradford's to lose going forward. The level of optimism out there surrounding Bridgewater continues to surprise me but maybe he'll be able to come back strong.

I was reading an article by Kevin Siefert this morning in which he wrote that the Vikings will likely pick up Bridgewater's 5th year option in May. That surprised me
So, if there have been no updates on his injury, how can they make the claim that "all indications are that his severe injury will not be healed"? Wouldn't you need some info to make that claim?
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by IrishViking »

Raptorman wrote: So, if there have been no updates on his injury, how can they make the claim that "all indications are that his severe injury will not be healed"? Wouldn't you need some info to make that claim?

Well my understanding was that right off the bat they thought he wouldn't be ready, it would have taken a lots of good new for him to beat that mark, an average recovery time had him missing 2017 opener.

An extremely optimistic time table has him starting light unsupervised jogging in mid to late February. 6 months isn't a lot of time to go from short gentle slow jogs to 100% confidence in game day performance.
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by J. Kapp 11 »

I've been pretty clear in my position, but I'll take it a step further. Sam Bradford should be the starter ... even if Bridgewater is healed completely. He's simply a better quarterback.

What he accomplished -- with no OTAs, no training camp, learning a new system, working under 3 OCs, losing AP and both tackles, having his OC walk out halfway through the season, getting pummeled game after game -- is nothing short of phenomenal. With an entire season, he easily would have passed 4,000 yards. His interception percentage was less than 1%. While critics attribute his inordinately high completion percentage to short passes, it's important to note that he also ranked among the best in the league when he did throw the ball downfield. Teddy has never been a good downfield passer. The only thing Teddy had over SB is mobility, and Sam even improved on that toward the end of the season (and there's no guarantee that Teddy's mobility will be what it was prior to his injury).

I like Bridgewater as a person, and he seems to be really popular with his teammates. But Bradford is better, and that has to win the day IMO.
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by Alaskan »

J. Kapp 11 wrote:I've been pretty clear in my position, but I'll take it a step further. Sam Bradford should be the starter ... even if Bridgewater is healed completely. He's simply a better quarterback.

What he accomplished -- with no OTAs, no training camp, learning a new system, working under 3 OCs, losing AP and both tackles, having his OC walk out halfway through the season, getting pummeled game after game -- is nothing short of phenomenal. With an entire season, he easily would have passed 4,000 yards. His interception percentage was less than 1%. While critics attribute his inordinately high completion percentage to short passes, it's important to note that he also ranked among the best in the league when he did throw the ball downfield. Teddy has never been a good downfield passer. The only thing Teddy had over SB is mobility, and Sam even improved on that toward the end of the season (and there's no guarantee that Teddy's mobility will be what it was prior to his injury).

I like Bridgewater as a person, and he seems to be really popular with his teammates. But Bradford is better, and that has to win the day IMO.

Thumbs up. Good Post!
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by 808vikingsfan »

J. Kapp 11 wrote:I've been pretty clear in my position, but I'll take it a step further. Sam Bradford should be the starter ... even if Bridgewater is healed completely. He's simply a better quarterback.

What he accomplished -- with no OTAs, no training camp, learning a new system, working under 3 OCs, losing AP and both tackles, having his OC walk out halfway through the season, getting pummeled game after game -- is nothing short of phenomenal. With an entire season, he easily would have passed 4,000 yards. His interception percentage was less than 1%. While critics attribute his inordinately high completion percentage to short passes, it's important to note that he also ranked among the best in the league when he did throw the ball downfield. Teddy has never been a good downfield passer. The only thing Teddy had over SB is mobility, and Sam even improved on that toward the end of the season (and there's no guarantee that Teddy's mobility will be what it was prior to his injury).

I like Bridgewater as a person, and he seems to be really popular with his teammates. But Bradford is better, and that has to win the day IMO.
I'm still on the fence. I can't see how the Vikings can keep Bradford on the bench if both are healthy. But I still think Bridgewater has intangibles that Bradford doesn't. I can see Bridgeater being a better leader in the huddle. I also see him being better at extending plays when protection breaks down. Of course, it's hard to compare with how bad the OL has been these past several seasons. Also, with Peterson out, the Vikings play calling was not as predictable in 2016 which also adds another variable.

Pro Football Focus: Teddy Bridgewater Most Accurate Passer In NFL
... Teddy Bridgewater has shown all the abilities to be a big time, productive quarterback given the opportunity. Unfortunately, he runs an offense whose strategy is, more often than not. . .

-First down - Handoff to Adrian Peterson
-Second down - Handoff to Adrian Peterson
-Third down - Hope that Bridgewater can make something happen with three or four defenders in his face and/or while running for his life because it's 3rd-and-7 and everyone knows the Vikings have to throw
-Either punt on fourth down or repeat steps one through three
Bradford may be a better passer, but I have yet to be convinced that he's the better QB for this team, especially with how well Bridgewater was doing during camp and preseason.

I'll be happy with either as the starter. It's a good problem to have especially with the recent history at this position ( Ponder, Mcnabb, Jackson, Cassel, Holcomb).
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by RFIP »

mansquatch wrote:I'm not surprised. TB has the leadership qualities the team wants. He is on the sidelines all the time with his teammates. Whether he has the physical skills remains to be seen, but it is highly unlikely they'd find someone at the cost they'll pay TB.
The "cost" for TB is going to be north of $10 mil if they pick up his 5th year option in a couple months as they are talking about doing. I find it impossible to believe any team would do that, much less one that already has a better QB in the fold who is just reaching his prime years.
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by Texas Vike »

J. Kapp 11 wrote:I've been pretty clear in my position, but I'll take it a step further. Sam Bradford should be the starter ... even if Bridgewater is healed completely. He's simply a better quarterback.

What he accomplished -- with no OTAs, no training camp, learning a new system, working under 3 OCs, losing AP and both tackles, having his OC walk out halfway through the season, getting pummeled game after game -- is nothing short of phenomenal. With an entire season, he easily would have passed 4,000 yards. His interception percentage was less than 1%. While critics attribute his inordinately high completion percentage to short passes, it's important to note that he also ranked among the best in the league when he did throw the ball downfield. Teddy has never been a good downfield passer. The only thing Teddy had over SB is mobility, and Sam even improved on that toward the end of the season (and there's no guarantee that Teddy's mobility will be what it was prior to his injury).

I like Bridgewater as a person, and he seems to be really popular with his teammates. But Bradford is better, and that has to win the day IMO.

Kapp, you're on a roll lately :lol: . It seems that every post I find myself nodding vigorously to is written by you lately. :v):
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by PurpleKoolaid »

Teddy would have to win the job from Sam at this point, and that would be very hard to do.
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by autobon7 »

PurpleKoolaid wrote:Teddy would have to win the job from Sam at this point, and that would be very hard to do.
Agree :smilevike:
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Re: The future of the Vikings, part 1: The quarterbacks

Post by mansquatch »

I still think they'll keep TB as a back up.

One angle on this is that is the team is in a window then it makes sense to pay Sam and push to get a championship. in that case, TB is a great option at backup, albeit expensive. Also, if TB performs well in a backup capacity they could trade him to recoup some of the draft pick used to acquire Sam in the first place.

If you think the team is not in a window, then it makes sense to resign TB, get him at a lower price next year and let Sam walk. TB is 5 years younger than Bradford and has time to help the team through a rebuild.

I think letting Teddy walk is as expensive as signing him. Right now we have 2 recent 1st round picks invested at QB. That is a lot to just let hit Free Agency, IMO.
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