The quarterback competition in Minnesota has officially begun. After numerous will-they-won't-they rumors before the NFL Draft, the Vikings opted to trade back into the first round and selected former Louisville standout, Teddy Bridgewater, to add to their quarterback roster. The Vikings needed a quarterback and decided that despite his falling stock, Bridgewater was the best available. Now, the rookie is set to compete, not just as a backup, but to possibly start Week 1.
Bridgewater will join veteran Matt Cassel and failed first-round pick Christian Ponder in the quarterback rotation. A trade regarding Ponder is still a possibility, but unlikely at this point considering Minnesota has not been able to get a buyer for months now. After already endorsing Cassel as the starter for 2014, head coach Mike Zimmer believes the team will start Bridgewater if he is the best on the roster.
"Teddy will play when we feel like he's ready, if he's the best guy, which we hope that he will be," Zimmer said, via the Minnesota Star Tribune. "We always want to have competition."
The Vikings have been down this road once before. The team drafted Ponder in the first round and put him on the field Week 1. That failed to materialize into any success. Minnesota is set up to let Bridgewater develop, something that has proven successful in the past. Quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers waited three years for their starting job. Bridgewater started both his high school and college careers on the sideline before being given the ball. If history has taught the Vikings anything, it is that putting a rookie on the field for the first game might not be the best move for their development.
Zimmer is not ready to hand the starting reigns over to Bridgewater just yet despite team fans wanting him as their quarterback immediately. Former Minnesota quarterback Rich Gannon does not believe the rookie is prepared to start and believes a year in the weight room and film room would do him much better than being thrown right into the fire.
Zimmer is under pressure. General manager Rick Spielman told media that the team cannot afford to screw up another quarterback decision. They failed with Ponder and do not want to do the same with Bridgewater. Zimmer noted that Ponder will not be traded and will remain on the roster as a backup of some sorts, putting more pressure on Bridgewater to perform early. Will it work out or did the Vikings just draft Ponder 2.0?