New England Patriots: 5 Quarterbacks to replace Tom Brady if he leaves
4. Teddy Bridgewater
If Tom Brady leaves the New England Patriots as a free agent this offseason and the Patriots are forced to look elsewhere to fill the quarterback position for the first time in over two decades, one option that could be on the free-agent market is Teddy Bridgewater.
Bridgewater initially broke into the NFL in 2014 with the Minnesota Vikings after he was drafted out of Louisville with the 32nd overall pick in that year’s draft.
Bridgewater went on to play three years as the starting quarterback in Minnesota until a gruesome and freak knee injury during training camp forced the organization to move on from its promising young quarterback.
The 27-year-old went on to sign with the New Orleans Saints prior to the 2018 campaign and just wrapped up his second season with the Saints while serving as a backup to veteran Drew Brees.
During the 2019 regular season, Bridgewater did manage to get a decent amount of playing time while Brees went through a hand injury that sidelined him in the middle of the year, appearing in nine games while starting five of those contests.
While showing the rest of the NFL that he is back to being healthy, Bridgewater was stellar in filling in for Brees during a five-game stretch during the season, leading New Orleans to a 5-0 record in that span.
Over the course of the season, Bridgewater managed to complete 67.9 percent of his passes, tallying a total of 1,384 yards and nine touchdowns. He also has the ability to stretch the field and offense with his capability to get outside of the pocket and run the ball.
The fact that Bridgewater will likely be available to sign with a new squad going into 2020, New England could look to add the quarterback to its roster if Brady moves on during free agency. Bridgewater could provide the Patriots with a quarterback who can do a little bit of everyone on the offensive side of the field, and could also give New England a somewhat young quarterback for the next few years.