The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a new quarterback on the roster, but a name that is familiar to fans. Teddy Bridgewater was signed to a one-year contract and will compete with Kyle Trask for the right to back up Baker Mayfield.
Bridgewater played his college ball at Louisville, and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings where he earned Pro Bowl honors in 2015, leading the Vikings to an 11-5 record. The 32-year-old most recently played with the Detroit Lions in 2024. Bridgewater also coached at Miami Northwestern High School last season before signing with the Lions for the stretch run.
He was suspended this summer as he was found to be giving his players Uber rides home from practice, and making sure they had something to eat.
Besides the Vikings, Bridgewater has played with the New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos and the Miami Dolphins. Bridgewater has a 33-32 record as a starter. He suffered a debilitating ACL injury in 2016 while with the Vikings, and would not be a starter again until the 2021 season when he started 14 games for the Broncos.
The Buccaneers had four quarterbacks on the roster when training camp began, but an injury scare to starter Baker Mayfield, and an injury to first-year quarterback Michael Pratt, meant the snaps were being divided up between Mayfield, Trask, and rookie Conner Bazelak. The Bucs realized they needed additional depth and therefore signed Bridgewater.
Bridgewater is excited to be in Tampa and pass on his knowledge to the younger players on the roster. “Honestly, man, I’m just here right now to try to help this team in every way possible, whether it’s in the quarterback room, or the wide receiver room.”
“I’m excited to just share some of the wisdom that I have, the experience that I have from being in different organizations, being in different offenses, being on different teams with guys who’ve had success. I’m just going to do whatever the role is for me, try to be a humble servant like I’ve been doing.”
Other Notes
—The Buccaneers released their first depth chart of training camp, but don’t pay much attention to the starters as most of them will not see action on Saturday night.
—Rookie cornerback Robert Parrish continues to draw high praise from head coach Todd Bowles for his knowledge of the playbook. “He’s been good since the first day he got here,” Bowles said. “We correct him very little, and that’s a scary thing, especially for me. We don’t say his name much because he’s always doing the right thing.”
—Tackle Tristan Wirfs and wide receiver Chris Godwin have not practiced at all during camp and remain on the PUP list.