The Denver Broncos finished Sunday with a 3-0 record and have a chance to be 4-0 after they host the Baltimore Ravens in Week 4 of the 2021 NFL season. One big reason why the team is 3-0 is because of their starting quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater.
All offseason, the talk surrounding the Broncos was that they needed to find their next franchise quarterback after a below average year from Drew Lock. Denver hired a new general manager in George Paton and Paton would go on to say that the Broncos would bring in competition for Lock. Who could that quarterback have been though? Was it going to be a free agent quarterback like Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tyrod Taylor, Mitchell Trubisky, or even Andy Dalton? The Broncos were even talking trades with teams.
Denver had been in trade negotiations with the Detroit Lions for Matthew Stafford, but according to Mike Klis of 9News in Denver, Detroit wanted Lock to be part of the trade and the Broncos declined. Instead, the Broncos sent a sixth round pick the Carolina Panthers for Bridgewater one day before the NFL Draft.
The Broncos had always been interested in Bridgewater dating back to April when I was told a trade was close to happening. Paton was part of the front office that drafted Bridgewater in the first-round and Fangio coached against him while in Chicago. It seemed like it was meant to be.
Bridgewater had to overcome a lot this offseason while with the Broncos as well, and it wasn’t his fault.
On night one of the NFL Draft, news broke that Aaron Rodgers was upset with the Green Bay Packers and didn’t want to play for them again. Then it was reported later that the Broncos were close on a deal to bring Rodgers to Denver. This speculation lasted all offseason with Ian Rapoport reporting during Week 1 that the Broncos would still be interested in Rodgers next offseason.
Not only was it the Aaron Rodgers rumors, Bridgewater had to overcome a quarterback competition against Lock. Entering training camp Lock seemed to have the upper hand. In fact, Lock looked like the better quarterback in practice during training camp, but when it came to the preseason games, Bridgewater outplayed Lock and would be named the starter after the first two preseason games.
Denver is entering Week 4 as one of the few remaining undefeated teams in the NFL, sitting in first place of the AFC West. With Bridgewater at the helm, the culture surrounding the Broncos feels different. The team seems more mature and it shows from the quarterback to the head coach. Bridgewater is playing in his seventh NFL season and is only 28 years old, but feels like a 12-year vet talking to old coaches. In fact, he stays in touch with legendary head coach Bill Parcells. The two have a really strong relationship and talk all of the time even after games. You don’t really see young quarterbacks talking to Hall of Fame coaches like that — it kind of seems like something Peyton Manning would do.
Even during the preseason, Bridgewater made sure to have the equipment managers make sure his locker was next to second year wide receiver K.J. Hamler so that the two could connect and build a relationship together on and off the field.
The locker room loves Bridgewater and there hasn’t been a single negative thing said about Bridgewater coming out of that Broncos facility. Teammates love the guy and he’s very respected.
During training camp, Bridgewater will go over and talk with the defensive backs and talk about plays and tendencies with them so they can all make each other better. It’s not hard to see the connection Bridgewater has with his teammates.
Behind the scenes a quarterback can come in and be liked and respected, but it also needs to be shown on the field on game days and that exactly what Bridgewater has done.
The narrative surrounding the name “game manager” might not get the respect it needs to have because guys like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady managed games. Right now, Bridgewater is managing games for the Broncos this season and he had Pro Bowl caliber stats to go with it.
Head coach Vic Fangio was asked this week if he thought Bridgewater has done enough to shed the game manager narrative and Fangio responded, “If he’s managing us to victories, we’ll all love it. He’s just a damn good quarterback.”
It’s safe to say that the Broncos have found their franchise quarterback for right now and could be the answer for the long-term moving forward. The question becomes now, can Bridgewater get the Broncos to the playoffs for the first time since they appeared in Super Bowl 50?
More from The Woody Paige Sports Network:
- Woody Paige: That time I played blackjack with Michael Jordan in Monte Carlo
- Atlanta Falcons lose by accidentally scoring a touchdown
- John Elway’s 7 best moments as General Manager of the Denver Broncos
- Super Bowl odds 2022: Tom Brady and Buccaneers among Super Bowl 56 favorites
- Denver Broncos favored to land Aaron Rodgers via trade
- Woody Paige: Aaron Rodgers will ultimately end up with Denver Broncos
- OU and Texas to the SEC: Another step toward the professionalization of “college” football?
- Nix the “Power Six” – Time for real a G5 “Alliance” between the AAC and the Mountain West
