Former NFL GM: Bridgewater injury might keep him out longer than a season

Marty Hurney takes the long view when analyzing the trade the Minnesota Vikings made to acquire quarterback Sam Bradford from the Philadelphia Eagles.

As far as the former general manager of the Carolina Panthers is concerned, the Vikings’ willingness to part with first- and fourth-round picks reflects doubt that their former starter, Teddy Bridgewater, is going to return in 2017 from the serious knee injury he recently suffered in practice.

‘Don’t know when he’s going to come back’

“The first thing that I thought about it is everybody is talking about this year for the Minnesota Vikings, but this injury to Teddy Bridgewater may not be just one year,” Hurney told Zig Fracassi and Adam Kaplan on NFL Rewind. “It might be longer. I mean, it was so serious an injury, we don’t know when or if he’s going to come back. And the Vikings have done what you have to do. You have to throw darts, you have try to take shots at getting that franchise quarterback.

‘Huge question mark at quarterback’

“So, for them to give up a first (in 2017) and a fourth in 2018, they’re not only looking for somebody to come in for this year, but they really want Sam Bradford, they need Sam Bradford to be their starter not this year, but next year, because there’s a huge question mark at that quarterback position and Teddy Bridgewater’s ability to come back from that gruesome injury. Not only missing this year, but what’s he going to be like next year?”

Sage Rosenfels on Vikings’ trade for Bradford: ‘You have to go for it’

You’re a top-five team, with a top-five defense and one of the best coaching staffs in the NFL, and you suddenly find yourself without a starting quarterback.

That was how former NFL QB Sage Rosenfels assessed the Minnesota Vikings’ predicament after losing Teddy Bridgewater to a season-ending knee injury.

‘You don’t have a legitimate starter’

“So what do you do?” Rosenfels, who played for the Vikings in 2009, told Zig Fracassi and Alex Marvez in reaction to the Vikings’ blockbuster trade with the Philadelphia Eagles for Sam Bradford. “You don’t have a legitimate starting quarterback. And that’s not a hit on Shaun Hill. He’s had a great career, played for 15 years in this league. My assumption is he’s going to start the first game of the year and probably the first few games of the year until Sam Bradford feels comfortable in this offense.

‘Chance to go deep’

“But (General Manager Rick Spielman has) got a really good ball club. He’s got a chance to go deep into the playoffs, possibly even the Super Bowl with the talent the they have with Adrian Peterson, maybe in his final couple years of being a premier tailback. You have to go for it.”

Sure, Spielman had vowed not to “mortgage the future” to replace Bridgewater, but he did exactly that by parting with a first-round draft pick in 2017 and a conditional fourth-rounder in 2018. Yet, under the circumstances, Rosenfels didn’t consider it necessarily a ridiculous price.

‘They gave up a lot, but salary not too bad’

“There’s not too many times you can go out and get a legitimate NFL starter Week One of the season, and they did that with Sam Bradford,” Rosenfels said. “They gave up a lot for him as far as draft-pick compensation, but as far as actual salary and salary-cap compensation, it’s not too bad. You could say (it’s) a risky play, but what else do you do if you’re Rick Spielman and the Minnesota Vikings but be aggressive in this situation.”