There’s a possibility that this season is the end of the Adrian Peterson era for the Minnesota Vikings. As bad as that may sound, fans that see the glass half-full would rather focus on the promising future of the team with Teddy Bridgewater under center. With Matt Cassell injured, Bridgewater will make his first regular season start as a pro on Sunday. So what is reasonable for the young, talented gun slinger?
Read on for a breakdown of how Bridgewater and the Vikings will perform in their Week 4 against the visiting Atlanta Falcons as +3 home underdogs. For more on the game, read our complete preview of Falcons vs. Vikings.
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What to expect from the Vikings in Week 4
[sc:NFL240banner ]Early NFL mock drafts from last year projected Teddy Bridgewater to be taken no. 1 overall in the 2014 NFL Draft. For one, the Houston Texans needed a quarterback after Matt Schaub’s whack job in 2013.
But somewhere along the way, Bridgewater’s stock fell dramatically. As it turned out, Bridgewater was the last player to be drafted in the first round, 32nd overall. He began his rookie season with the Vikings toiling in the sidelines, but Bridgewater’s time is now here. So what should football fans expect from the Vikings against the Falcons?
The passing game continues to struggle
Bridgewater is a football player and not a miracle worker, so it’s not appropriate to expect that the Vikings 31st-ranked passing game will improve dramatically in his first start, even against the Falcons’ 24th-ranked passing defense that gives up 262.7 yards per game.
In the Vikings’ 20-9 loss to the New Orleans Saints in Week 3, though, Bridgewater showed composure when he was called into play after Cassel went down. He led the Vikings to two scoring drives that ended in field goals but had a hard time finding the end zone. He finished with 150 yards on 12-of-20 passing.
It doesn’t help Bridgewater that he has minimal options down the field. At best, he only has two legitimate targets in wide receivers Cordarrelle Patterson (143 receiving yards) and Greg Jennings (132). Other than those two, no other Viking has at least 100 receiving yards so far this season.
Create a betting account now, and get a bet down before this rookie quarterback gives oddsmakers a chance to adjust.
Expect the Vikings to pick up more yards on the ground
Bridgewater can rush the ball pretty well. He was among the best dual-threat QBs in high school and in the college football ranks, where he spent three years terrorizing opposing defenses while playing for Louisville. Now playing in the NFL, he remains to be just as good using his legs. He showed a glimpse of his mobility when he extended some plays against the Saints by scrambling to buy his receivers more time to shake off their defenders.
Furthermore, Bridgewater moved the chains against the Saints by rushing too. He ran the ball for 27 yards on six carries for an average of 4.5 yards per attempt. Although the sample size is still small, the fact that he effectively used his legs in making plays and moving forward brings optimism to a team that sorely needs additional spark in its rushing game. The Vikings are 24th in the NFL in rushing yards per game, averaging a mediocre 99.3 yards a game.
So while the passing game may be relatively calm against the Falcons as Bridgewater learns the offense, you can expect him to find opportunities on the ground both in called plays and in play action, where Teddy has been burning defenses since he was a teen.
History doesn’t bode well…
Even beyond the pessimistic outlook of the Minnesota offense in particular, the history of rookie quarterbacks in their debut starts doesn’t lead to much reason for optimism for Bridgewater. In 2012, when Andrew Luck, Russell Wilson, Brandon Weeden, and Ryan Tannehill all made their first starts in Week 1, they went a combined 0-4 with an incredible 10 interceptions (Luck 3, Wilson 0, Weeden 4, Tannehill 3).
And yet, at the same time, 2012 might be history’s most encouraging example. Luck and company weren’t the only rookie quarterbacks making their first start that day: Robert Griffin III also made his debut, throwing the fourth-most yards ever in a quarterback’s first start (320) with two touchdowns and 42 yards on the ground. And again, that may be the key for Bridgewater. While no man can settle in immediately to the intensity of an NFL pass rush, and the complex looks NFL defenses throw at a quarterback, the most agile and adaptable QBs are able to recover from blown play calls or sudden blitzes with their legs – just like Bridgewater.
Writer’s Prediction
Bridgewater comes in and blends Weeden with Griffin, throwing three picks but also picking up big chunks of yardage downfield and adding a touchdown on the ground as he helps the Vikings cover +3 in a losing effort.
