History against Bridgewater, Bortles as midseason QB changes
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — When Minnesota Vikings quarterbacks coach Scott Turner told Teddy Bridgewater it was time, the low-key rookie quarterback nodded and shrugged his shoulders.
This wasn't how Bridgewater envisioned getting his first NFL game action — down 10 points in the second quarter at New Orleans, after starter Matt Cassel hobbled off with a season-ending foot injury. But few QBs get a chance midseason in an ideal situation.
"There's a lot of guys that might be a more level or poised guy that get put in a position like that, and they feel they have to go be this rah-rah (guy)," Turner said Wednesday. "Guys realize that that's not who you are. They see through that. And Teddy's very confident."
Ready or not, it's Teddy time for the Vikings beginning Sunday, when Bridgewater — the 32nd overall pick in the first round of May's draft — makes his starting debut against the Atlanta Falcons at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
Some 1,500 miles away in San Diego, No. 3 pick Blake Bortles will make his first start for the Jacksonville Jaguars, who benched starting quarterback Chad Henne at halftime of last week's 44-17 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
"I took every opportunity that I could and made the most out of it and (wanted to) get better each and every day," Bortles told news reporters Wednesday. "I had no idea that it would be this year or five years down the road when I'd play in an NFL regular-season game."
Jaguars coach Gus Bradley made clear after the draft he didn't intend to play Bortles at all this season. Vikings coach Mike Zimmer strongly hinted he felt the same way about Bridgewater. But circumstances have changed, as they often do — and rarely for the better — to elevate a franchise's quarterback of the future from second string once his rookie year is underway.
Of the 28 quarterbacks drafted in the first round from 2004 to 2013, 11 entered the starting lineup after Week 1 as rookies. Just two, Ben Roethlisberger and Vince Young, led their teams to winning records that season. Eli Manning and Jay Cutler are among the memorable flops, though both have recovered since.
"To me, it's somewhat of an advantage," Bridgewater said of spending a few weeks as a backup, "because I can know what it takes to prepare for a game and what to expect."
But much like many of the first-round QBs thrust in midstream since Young — JaMarcus Russell, Josh Freeman, Tim Tebow, Christian Ponder, Blaine Gabbert — Bridgewater and Bortles are sliding into situations that don't exactly appear stacked for success.
In their 1-2 start, the Vikings put halfback Adrian Peterson on the exempt list and cut receiver Jerome Simpson because of legal troubles and lost tight end Kyle Rudolph and right guard Brandon Fusco among others to injuries.
The Jaguars are shaking things up all over the roster after an 0-3 start in which they were outscored 105-10 in the eight quarters before turning to Bortles on Sunday. He finished 14-of-24 passing for 223 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Bridgewater was 12-of-20 for 150 yards and led the Vikings to a pair of field goals in a 20-9 loss to the Saints.
Asked Wednesday if he feels ready to start, Bortles said, "I don't know. ... We're going to play Sunday whether I'm ready or not, so I might as well get as ready as I can possibly be."
Getting a lot more work with the first-string offense this week should help both quarterbacks. Turner estimated Bridgewater got just "a handful" of reps with the starters each day in practice the past few weeks. The game plans should be more geared towards their skill sets, too.
"Whatever (Bortles is) not comfortable with, he takes it out, whether it be Saturday night or Sunday morning or every day in between," Jaguars offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch said. "He's got to be in control of what we call."
The other quarterback taken in the first round this year, Johnny Manziel, is backing up Brian Hoyer in Cleveland. The only Week 1 rookie starter was a second-round pick, Derek Carr, whose ascent in Oakland was expedited by veteran Matt Schaub's struggles — and the Raiders are 0-3.
So, it doesn't appear there will be another Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Russell Wilson, Andy Dalton, Mark Sanchez, Joe Flacco or Matt Ryan, who all started in Week 1 and helped their teams to the playoffs as rookies in recent years.
Will there be another Roethlisberger, who won his first 14 starts as the Pittsburgh Steelers made a run to the AFC Championship game in 2004? It's a long shot. But the Vikings and Jaguars apparently are confident in their young quarterbacks' ability to shrug off whatever trying times lie ahead.
"There's no substitution for the experience of actually going in and playing," Turner said. "That's what (Bridgewater)'s going to get now and I'm confident in him and his ability to go and be successful."
Follow Tom Pelissero on Twitter @TomPelissero.
