Favorites to trade for Teddy Bridgewater emerge
The Jets sound ready to start the Sam Darnold era in Week 1, so where does that leave Teddy Bridgewater? SportsLine's oddsmakers have the odds on where the 25-year-old QB suits up for the start of the regular season.
The New York Jets signed Teddy Bridgewater in the off-season to a one-year, prove-it deal, to challenge for a starting spot with veteran Josh McCown and rookie Sam Darnold.
But Darnold has been so good in the preseason, it sounds as though the Jets are ready to go with the "future is now" approach and start their first-round draft pick in Week 1. Â
If Darnold doesn't prove himself ready, Bridgewater may start. McCown is the No. 1 QB on the current depth chart but is considered the fallback option.
If Bridgewater isn't the No. 1, the Jets may be inclined to trade him for a draft pick or two. In other words, nothing is off the table.
So where will Bridgewater play in 2018? Here are the odds from SportsLine's oddsmakers:
What team will Teddy Bridgewater suit up for in Week 1 of the NFL regular season?
New York Jets 4/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 4/1
Denver Broncos 5/1
Los Angeles Rams 7/1
Jacksonville Jaguars 7/1
Miami Dolphins 8/1
New England Patriots 10/1
Houston Texans 10/1
Green Bay Packers 10/1
Carolina Panthers 10/1
The Field 5/1
Bridgewater, 25, is still in position to have a long NFL career as a starting QB. Then again, he's thrown just two passes in the last two seasons (and was 0-for-2 with an interception).
There are reportedly two teams that have already shown interest in adding Bridgwater. The last time we saw a healthy Bridgewater was 2015, when he led the Vikings to an 11-5 record, completion 65.3 percent of his passes with 14 TDs and nine INTs.
A potentially long career in Minnesota was sabotaged when Bridgewater suffered a gruesome leg injury during 2016 training camp, a setback that shelved him for nearly two full seasons.
Jets coach Todd Bowles says Bridgewater is 100 percent.
"He's never showed me that he was injured," Bowles said. "He did everything in the spring and everything in the summer. He hasn't taken a play or a day off or show any limp or any hitch to his giddy up. I never seen it, so I just keep it out of mind. He's always smiling and doing everything full speed, so I don't even worry about it. I'm just happy for him."
Despite the vote of confidence from the coach, would a team give up a solid draft pick for a quarterback that hasn't yet had opportunity to prove he can stay healthy for a full season?Â
PICK: There are a few teams with QB question marks. The Buccaneers won't have Jameis Winston for the first three weeks and sound ready to move on if a viable option is out there. A number of other teams -- many of them listed above -- could use a better backup.
The Field looks like a good bet. There's always the chance a QB gets injured in preseason -- as Bridgewater himself did in 2016. Any team desperately in need of a quarterback can call the Jets.Â
But the NFL is a conservative trade arena. Moves like this just don't seem to happen very often. Teams are always wary to move draft picks, and especially for players with injury concerns.Â
Plus, if Darnold doesn't work out, having Bridgewater would be a nice second option.
Go with the Jets keeping Bridgewater.Â
