Teddy Bridgewater has once again found himself on the injury report and with a big game against the Green Bay Packers on the horizon; the team needs their quarterback healthy. Bridgewater has had a quiet sophomore season in Minnesota and injuries have not helped as he just got over a concussion. Now Bridgewater is limited with shoulder problems.
According to Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk, Bridgewater is dealing with a shoulder injury that has left him limited in practice. The injury is not expected to leave the quarterback out in Week 11 which is good news for the Vikings since they face a critical NFC North matchup. It is unclear what the severity of the injury is. Bridgewater did not get hurt in Week 10, but it was apparently significant enough to place him on the injury report.
There has been some questions about Bridgewater's development this season. The quarterback's second year has not been the breakout hit that his rookie season was, but that can be chalked up to the return of Adrian Peterson. The running back is putting together another NFL MVP season and it has required Bridgewater to do less work through the air. When the run game has combined for over 200 yards in a game, throwing the ball is simply not needed. According to offensive coordinator Norv Turner, the Vikings are not worried about the development of Bridgewater as they have full confidence in the quarterback.
"We trust him as a player," Turner said, via ESPN.com. "We trust that Teddy's going to make the right decisions. I think, for the most part, he does. I agree with Coach Zimmer that he needs to turn it loose. I do think, though, that there is a fine line. We've played some good defenses; our defense is playing unbelievable. We're not giving the defense the ball in plus territory by making mistakes. With a guy like Teddy, who we do really trust, you can take the shots, and if they're not there, check down; be smart, and not just force something."
With the shoulder injury not expected to hinder Bridgewater, the quarterback is still not expected to throw much against the Packers as Peterson can take advantage of their weak run defense. Stefon Diggs, Mike Wallace and Charles Johnson could be in for another quiet game which is not good news for fantasy football owners. The Packers' have a thriving secondary, so Week 11 could be another chapter in Peterson's potential MVP season.
