Back in early April, the Detroit Lions made free agent quarterback Teddy Bridgewater what ESPN reported to be a strong contract offer. Then for months, all was quiet and Bridgewater remains available as training camps open around the league.
Multiple reports Monday evening said the Lions had Bridgewater in for a visit earlier in the day. That was surprising in some ways, but not surprisinging at all in the respect of Nate Sudfeld doesn't inspire much confidence if something happened to Jared Goff. At least Bridgewater has experience, with 65 starts on his resume. And head coach Dan Campbell took an opportunity to praise Bridgewater, who he was with for two years in New Orleans, when the Lions played the Broncos in 2021.
Subsequent reporting Monday night said the Lions signing Bridgewater is not imminent, per se. But that could of course change very quickly.
On Tuesday morning before practice, Bridgewater was a natural topic Campbell had to address with reporters.
Dan Campbell explains the Lions' rekindled interest in Teddy Bridgewater
Via Justin Rogers of the Detroit News, Campbell said the Lions have kept in touch with Bridgewater, and they've made sure Sudfeld is aware of that. Then he talked more specifically about Monday's visit.
"So it went good. Gave us a chance to sit down with him face-to-face, particularly (offensive coordinator) Ben (Johnson), Bru (quaterback coach Mark Brunell) and (general manager) Brad (Holmes). It gets me face-to-face with him again. Then just the medical (evaluation). So it was good. It was a good visit. We'll see where it goes.""Dan Campbell
Within the scope of the team's expectations this year, Campbell also talked about simply adding competition behing Goff. Which, despite general manager Brad Holmes' promise of "emphasis" on the No. 2 quarterback spot this offseason, has not happened. And no, rookie Hendon Hooker, in what Campbell called a "redshirt year" coming off a torn ACl, doesn't count as competition for Sudfeld.
"It's also the competition. It doesn't mean that (backup) Nate (Sudfeld) is out of anything if we go this route and it works out. You'll feel good about whoever comes out of the fire will be the right guy to help you along the way. But yeah, you don't want the wheels to fall off.""Dan Campbell
Bridgewater has proven he can capably step in and play as a backup. He went 5-0 starting in place of an injured Drew Brees for the Saints in 2019 (with Campbell on staff, of course). He went 0-2 in place of Tua Tagovailoa with the Miami Dolphins last year, but he did complete a solid 62 percent of his passes while averaging 8.6 yards per attempt over five total appearances.
So perhaps adding a backup who can legitimately hold down the fort if Goff goes down will land in the "better late than never" category for the Lions. Stay tuned, as it seems someone will be brought in to compete with or overtake Sudfeld.