The fact that the media in Carolina is turning on Teddy further proof that the Vikings made the right choice with Cousins
Note: This article originally appeared on our sister-site, purplePTSD.com. Check both sites (and our new Minnesota Wild site, MinnyICE.com) each day for all your Vikings news/analysis!
If there’s one major take that lead to me creating purplePTSD.com back in 2015, it was me telling those on the Minnesota Vikings sub-Reddit to pump the brakes on crowning Teddy Bridgewater as one of the elite quarterbacks in the NFL.
I launched purplePTSD in May of 2015 after a prolonged internet argument over then NFL prospect Trae Waynes’ ability to turn (I’m not joking), but didn’t really start covering the team heavily on the site until after Teddy’s sophomore season. He had thrown 14 touchdowns in each of his first two seasons, with 12 and 9 picks respectively.
I had Tommy Kramer on a podcast current co-host of my new KDLM radio show, Joe Oberle, at the time and we had Tommy Kramer as a guest. Kramer pointed out that Teddy’s struggles to connect with deep threat receiver Mike Wallace (who left the team for a “real quarterback” in Joe Flacco after 2016) were tied to his throwing motion. He wasn’t quite Vince Young, but he had a slight sidearm that didn’t allow for him to get any air under the ball.
It was that that made me feel he was incomplete. Case in point being the drafting of Laquon Treadwell, who was meant to be the ultimate button hook receiver in Minny. With both Adam Thielen, Stefon Diggs and Mike Wallace (who had over 1,000 yards his first season with that “real” quarterback), the Vikings offense was predicated on giving the ball to Adrian Peterson and throwing 10-15 yard button hook pass after button hook pass.
Treadwell was the best contested ball receiver in the 2016 NFL Draft, and was going to help the Vikings dink-and-dunk all over the NFL.
Then the 2016 pre-season began and I saw with mine own eyes a Bridgewater reborn. He was working on his throwing motion in camp, and seemed to finally have figured out the deep ball in the pre-season games he played in to the point that I posted an article stating “I’ll admit it, Teddy is the franchise” on purplePTSD.
Immediately after posting that I saw Tweets come through stating that an ambulance was at the Vikings facility for Bridgewater. It was so instant after my post that I thought people were trolling me (by saying I’d jinxed things). I quickly realized that those reports were true (and that I apparently had control over the universe?), but didn’t realize that the Bridgewater era in Minnesota had ended.
Fast forward a few seasons and Teddy finally has had his shot to show that Minnesota made a mistake by not biding their time with Teddy. After all, many in Minnesota loathe quarterback Kirk Cousins and his contract, so you’d think Teddy’s play would be a huge copy/paste comment topic for the increasing amount of articles pointing out the reality that Cousins is a great quarterback. But the former Teddy-ites have been strangely silent (about that).
Now we know why.
It appears that things are bad in Carolina. The media there is beginning to turn on Bridgewater, and are bemoaning the fact that they went all-in on Bridgewater in lieu of the best player in franchise history Cam Newton.
PanthersWire.com writer Anthony Rizzuti sums it up in an article titled ‘Loss to Broncos proves Panthers put themselves in quarterback purgatory’ by saying:
“Despite a mediocre career and a devastating injury history, Bridgewater was entrusted with the present and future of the franchise (on a three-year, $63 million contract) due largely to his familiarity with Brady. Both, one as Drew Brees’ backup and the other an offensive assistant, worked together with the New Orleans Saints from 2017-2018.”
And:
“Bridgewater, even for all the goodwill and likeability garnered from his peers, is the same unremarkable quarterback he’s always been.”
Or:
“Bridgewater began the afternoon completing each of his first seven passes. That’d be a pretty slick stat, had those seven completions not gone for a measly 36 yards.”
This next quote makes me think of when Vikings head coach/Teddy’s biggest defender Mike Zimmer said that the team wished that Teddy played the first 58 minutes of a game with the same intensity as the final two:
“[Bridgewater] continued by making a pair of crucial mental mistakes, the first coming on a delay-of-game penalty at the 6:14 mark of the fourth quarter. His inability to organize the play and personnel on time moved the Panthers from the Broncos’ 7-yard line to the 12, helping result in another field goal when they needed a touchdown.”
That’s not all:
“The second lapse, with Carolina down five with the ball on their own 29-yard line, saw Bridgewater run a play before the two-minute warning hit. Instead of using the stoppage to collect his offense and prepare for an incoming 3rd & 8, he rushed his unit to a no huddle and a subsequent incompletion. Rhule later pointed out the gaffe.”
Now something that solidifies what I said above (and in 2015/2016):
“It’s that Bridgewater—who’s been shy to move the ball downfield at a consistently alarming rate—ain’t it, folks.”
Sounds familiar, eh?
“Even with 22 men on the field at all times, this game often comes down to just one—the quarterback. And you’re not going to contend in today’s game with one who is too shy to throw past the sticks.”
Now. I know no one likes someone who pats themselves on the back in their content, unless that person is Stephen A. Smith, but I hate to say I told you so. I also should say that’s not why I brought this up.
Instead, I just wanted to point out to Cousins-naysayers that this is further evidence that the Vikings made the right move with Cousins. Case Keenum was cut by two teams in as many seasons, Sam Bradford’s body couldn’t hold up, and the 2018 roster was a quarterback (and offensive line) away from getting over the hump.
Even if they’d waited for Teddy to heal from his devastating injury, it wouldn’t have been an improvement over what we’ve seen from Cousins this, or any, season.
Teddy simply isn’t capable of making every throw needed in today’s NFL. This proves that. Meanwhile, Cousins is the second most accurate QB in league history, while making every throw needed to propel this offense to the elite status many forced on Teddy (and me) in 2015/16.
