After a 10-year career in the NFL, former Denver Broncos quarterback Teddy Bridgewater is hanging up his cleats.
Bridgewater, 31, was a star quarterback in college at Louisville and was picked by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft. Bridgewater became Minnesota’s full-time starter in 2015 and he helped the Vikings go 11-5 that year, earning a Pro Bowl nod.
Bridgewater’s career then hit a huge setback when he suffered a serious knee injury that included a torn ACL, a dislocated knee and structural damage in 2016. He then missed the entire 2016 season and half of the 2017 campaign.
After recovering from that injury, Bridgewater became a free agent in 2018 and signed a one-year deal with the New York Jets. Before the season started, New York traded Bridgewater to the New Orleans Saints. He went on to start six games in New Orleans, going 5-0 in the place of an injured Drew Brees in 2019.
Bridgewater finally got another opportunity to be a full-time starter with the Carolina Panthers in 2020, but the Panthers struggled that season, finishing with a 5-11 record.
The following offseason, Bridgewater was traded to the Broncos. He went 7-7 as a starter in Denver before ending the year on injured reserve with a concussion. He then spent the 2022 season with the Miami Dolphins and started two games in the place of an injured Tua Tagovailoa.
Bridgewater spent his final season as a backup with the Detroit Lions in 2023. He now retires from football with a 33-32 record as a starter with 15,120 passing yards and 75 touchdowns against 47 interceptions on his resume.
Bridgewater will now coach high school football in Miami, his hometown.
