Detroit Lions sign QB Teddy Bridgewater to back up Jared Goff
Dan Campbell never hid the Detroit Lions’ interest in signing Teddy Bridgewater, and it’s clear now that interest was mutual.
The Lions signed Bridgewater to be their new backup quarterback Monday, on the eve of their joint practices with the New York Giants.
Bridgewater, 31, was considered on the top backup quarterbacks on the market this offseason and immediately upgrades a spot the Lions have neglected for years.
Bridgewater is 33-32 as a starter in his nine-year career and completed 62% of his passes in two starts with the Miami Dolphins last season.
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He also has played for the Minnesota Vikings, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos and New Orleans Saints, when Campbell was an assistant with the team in 2018-19.
“I don’t think I’ve hidden anything about my feelings for Teddy Bridgewater,” Campbell said after Bridgewater made a free agent visit to the Lions this summer. “So if we can add a guy like Teddy and bring competition to the room, I’m all for it.”
Nate Sudfeld played as the Lions’ backup last season, but did not attempt a pass behind Jared Goff. Sudfeld signed a one-year deal to stay with the Lions this spring and had taken all of the second-team reps in training camp.
Sudfeld said last week the Lions have kept him abreast of their interest in Bridgewater, which Campbell said is part of their plan to accumulate as much talent — and as much insurance — as possible for what they hope will be a long playoff run.
“The fact we’re — here we go, man. We’re Year 3 and I think we’re in a much better position and you just, you want to know that you are in the best hands possible,” Campbell said. “I’ll leave it at that. But that’s also — it’s the competition. That doesn’t mean Nate’s out of anything if we go this route, and if it works out you’ll feel good about whoever comes out of the fire is going to be the right guy to help you along the way. But yeah, you don’t want the wheels to fall off.”
The Lions have two other quarterbacks on their 91-man roster: Rookie third-round pick Henson Hooker and undrafted rookie Adrian Martinez.
Hooker is on the nonfootball injury list and is not expected to play this preseason as he recovers from a college knee injury.
Martinez has worked exclusively with the third-team offense in camp.
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions sign QB Teddy Bridgewater to back up Jared Goff
