Teddy Bridgewater can still draw a crowd, even if he is now a high school football head coach. Hundreds of fans lined the field to watch Bridgewater coach spring ball, underscoring not just his celebrity in South Florida but the insatiable appetite the state has for the sport.
Bridgewater, a former Heisman Trophy candidate in college at Louisville, was a first-round pick in the 2014 NFL draft. Upon his retirement following 10 years in the NFL, Bridgewater announced that he would become head coach at Miami Northwestern High School (Miami, Florida).
Northwestern, coincidentally, is where Bridgewater played his high school football and would become a four-star national recruit (he was the No. 113 recruit in the nation in the 2011 class according to Rivals).
So Bridgewater’s return to Northwestern was a big deal and one that has created understandable buzz in and around the community.
He made his team run around the field and thank the fans who showed up to watch practice.
Bridgewater said he is trying to establish within the program “A culture that’s built around hard work.”
“We live in a time where everything is handed to these kids,” Bridgewater said. “And I want to come back and remind them that everything you really want, you have to work hard for.”
Northwestern went a disappointing 4-6 last season.
Teddy Bridgewater coaching high school football is so cool to see.
Former NFL quarterback Teddy Bridgewater traded playing football to coaching this past winter it as he returned to his alma mater, Miami Northwestern High School, to lead its football program.
A new video showed Bridgewater conducting spring practice with his new team, which is such a cool thing to see after watching Bridgewater on Sundays for a decade.
Pro athletes giving back through high school coaching is always such a cool thing to see, and it’d be awesome if Bridgewater is the next NFL veteran to return to the high school level and coach a team to a state title.
We bet the athletes at Miami Northwest are thrilled to have someone with the experience Bridgewater has coaching their team.
Coach Teddy Bridgewater teaching the next generation is everything 🫶🤝
Judd Zulgad looks at what could have been with the Minnesota Vikings under Mike Zimmer and Teddy Bridgewater
It seemed fitting that news of Mike Zimmer interviewing for the Dallas Cowboys’ defensive coordinator position came a day after Miami (Florida) Northwestern High School named Teddy Bridgewater as its head football coach.
The association between Zimmer and Bridgewater might not be clear to some, but anyone who follows the Minnesota Vikings knows how inextricably linked the two are in franchise history.
It’s one of the great what-ifs not only for Vikings fans but also those who worked for the organization when Bridgewater arrived as the last pick of the first round in the 2014 draft. Bridgewater’s selection — Vikings general manager Rick Spielman acquired the 32nd pick in a draft-night trade with Seattle — came less than four months after Zimmer had been hired as the ninth head coach in Vikings history.
This was long before anyone knew the defensive-minded Zimmer had limited patience with quarterbacks and saw them more as a necessary evil than anything. Maybe it was because Zimmer’s offensive coordinator, Norv Turner, had a big hand in the decision to select Bridgewater, or maybe it was because Zimmer himself played a role in the pick. Zimmer seemed more taken with Bridgewater than he would with any other quarterback who followed.
After replacing the injured Matt Cassel as the starting quarterback in September 2014, Bridgewater helped lead the Vikings to an NFC North title in 2015 and what should have been a victory over Seattle in the wild card round, if not for Blair Walsh’s missed field goal with 26 seconds in the fourth quarter.
The disappointment of that loss remains with Vikings fans to this day, but at the time the organization had high hopes for the future with Bridgewater leading the way. Bridgewater, like any quarterback, was criticized by some who felt his arm strength wasn’t sufficient, or didn’t like his style of play. Zimmer, however, didn’t care, he liked what Bridgewater provided both on the field and in the locker room as a leader.
The optimism surrounding Bridgewater reached its zenith on the afternoon of Aug. 28, 2016. The Vikings, playing their first-ever game in U.S. Bank Stadium, beat the Chargers, 23-10, as Bridgewater completed 12-of-16 passes for 161 yards, including a 27-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kyle Rudolph that came on his last pass of the day late in the second quarter.
That was supposed to be Bridgewater’s final tune-up for the regular-season opener on Sept. 11 in Tennessee. Bridgewater never got there.
Two days later, during a practice at Winter Park in Eden Prairie, Bridgewater dropped back to pass, planted his foot and immediately collapsed to the ground with a gruesome leg injury. The then 23-year-old had suffered a torn left ACL, a dislocation of the knee joint and other structural damage. His season was over and it was clear his once-promising career never would be the same.
The injury was so shocking that Zimmer called off the practice after 25 minutes as Bridgewater was attended to by the medical staff. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital.
The Vikings quickly acquired veteran Sam Bradford from Philadelphia for a first-round pick in the 2017 draft and started 5-0 before winning only three more games and missing the playoffs with an 8-8 record. Zimmer’s starting QB list went from Bradford, who was injured early in the 2017 season; to Case Keenum, who replaced Bradford and helped take the Vikings all the way to the 2017 NFC championship game; to Kirk Cousins, who was signed to a three-year, $84 million contract in 2018.
From an outside perspective, Zimmer never seemed to trust Keenum and he had no interest in signing Cousins to a contract that would take away from the ability to solidify other areas of his team, namely defense.
Zimmer’s firing came after back-to-back sub-.500 seasons in 2020 and 2021, and occurred long after Bridgewater had departed as a free agent and led a nomadic football life that included stops with the Jets, Saints, Panthers, Broncos, Dolphins and Lions. Zimmer, 67, spent the past two years at his Kentucky ranch before recently making it clear he wants to get back into coaching.
Both men must occasionally wonder about how different things might have been if not for that awful day in late August. Maybe Bridgewater would have eventually flopped, but the fact Zimmer embraced Bridgewater as his quarterback said a lot about his faith in the QB’s abilities.
Do the Vikings not only get to the NFC title game in 2017, but do they beat the Eagles and become the first team to play a Super Bowl in their home stadium? Does the second act of Zimmer’s tenure in Minnesota not turn into a daily drama, in part because he doesn’t have to work with a veteran quarterback he clearly never wanted?
These are the great what-ifs that will remain exactly that when it comes to Zimmer and Bridgewater. Their names forever linked in Vikings lore, and the news, even six years after they were separated.
Judd Zulgad is co-host of the Purple Daily Podcast and Mackey & Judd podcast atwww.skornorth.com.
Teddy Bridgewater’s high school coaching career comes with high expectations. Miami Northwestern has sent some impressive players to the NFL:
Good luck in the next chapter of your football life, Teddy Bridgewater. The former New Orleans Saints quarterback’s high school coaching career comes with high expectations: Miami Northwestern has sent some impressive players to the NFL, and they’ve been a fixture in the South Florida playoff picture.
Bridgewater was hired after his Miami Northwestern alma mater went 4-6 in 2023, their first season with a losing record since 2014’s 5-6 finish. The school had won 10 or more games in five of the seven seasons in-between, and Bridgewater will be expected to return to those standards.
He’ll be responsible for making a positive influence on the next generation — including college recruits like 2024 cornerback Guylijah Theodule (a former Vanderbilt commit who has drawn offers from Florida, Miami, James Madison, and Marshall) and quarterback Adrian Posse (who signed his letter of intent with UAB), as well as 2026 four-star wide receiver Calvin Russell (who has already drawn attention from Florida State, Appalachian State, Marshall, Texas A&M, and USF).
They’re the next in line to join the future pros who walked the same hallways, studied in the same classrooms, and starred on the same football field as Bridgewater himself. Here’s a quick look at some of the NFL talent to come out of Miami Northwestern:
Teddy Bridgewater returns to Miami to coach Northwestern High School.
Teddy Bridgewater is coming home, the former NFL quarterback set to return to the high school where he was once a star.
Bridgewater’s return to Northwestern High School (Miami) is certainly intriguing. He graduated from the school in 2011 as a four-star recruit and the sixth-ranked pro-style quarterback in the nation according to Rivals.
He was the No. 113 overall recruit and one of the top recruits to ever come from Northwestern, a program that has perenially been among the best in Florida.
BREAKING: Teddy Bridgewater is the new head coach at Miami Northwestern 😳🚨
Following his career at Northwestern, Bridgewater went on to play college football at Louisville where he was the All-Big East Player of the Year in 2012. In 2014, he was a first-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings in the 2014 NFL draft.
Last season, Northwestern went 4-6. The return of Bridgewater as head coach is a jolt of energy to the program with his considerable background and accomplishments both in college at Louisville and then on Sundays.
Former Minnesota Vikings QB Teddy Bridgewater has been named the next head coach of the Miami Northwestern high school football team.
It didn’t take long for former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to wind up back in football now that his playing days are over. Bridgewater, who wrapped up his NFL career after the Detroit Lions loss to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game, has been named the head coach of the Miami Northwestern high school football team.
Bridgewater, who spent his first three NFL seasons with the Vikings, announced earlier this year that this season would be his last in the NFL. Now he has made that official by stepping into his first coaching role back in his hometown of Miami.
During his tenure with the Vikings, Bridgewater started 28 games after being selected in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Bridgewater made the Pro Bowl in his second season with the team, before suffering a devastating knee injury during a team practice before his third season.
After the knee injury, Bridgewater spend two seasons in New Orleans as a backup before landing in Carolina with the Panthers and regaining his role as a starting quarterback. The journeyman QB also had stints in Denver and Miami before landing in Detroit for his final season.
Now, Bridgewater is stepping into the world of coaching, looking to impart the knowledge he’s gained over a 10-year NFL career on the future generations of NFL stars and role players.
With Teddy B. calling the shots, the Northwestern Bulls should be well-prepared in red-zone and two-minute drills.
A former Carolina Panthers quarterback is going back to his roots.
As first reported by Andy Villamarzo of SBLive Sports on Friday morning, Teddy Bridgewater has been hired as the new head football coach at Miami Northwestern High School, his alma mater.
The news was confirmed by the school’s athletic director Andre Williams, who spoke with the worldwide leader about the hire.
“Teddy, he’s never left the school,” Williams said, per ESPN senior writer Adam Rittenberg. “Since he’s been in the NFL the last 10 years and certainly in college, he was always at the school during the offseason, working out with the young men, giving them his knowledge of the game. He’s never left the school, so we’re just officially bringing him back as the head coach.”
Bridgewater, a Miami, Fla. native, has retired from the NFL after last weekend’s NFC championship title game—where his Detroit Lions fell to the San Francisco 49ers. He spent one of his nine pro seasons with the Panthers, for whom he started 15 games with in 2020.
The 31-year-old also picked up stints with the Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Denver Broncos and Miami Dolphins.
QB Teddy Bridgewater, who went 7-7 with the Broncos in 2021, has retired after a 10-year NFL career. He’ll now coach high school football.
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.
Freshly retired Lions QB Teddy Bridgewater already has his post-retirement gig
Teddy Bridgewater made it clear when he joined the Detroit Lions last summer that the 2023 season would be his last in the NFL. Sure enough, Bridgewater retired right after the Lions lost to the 49ers in the NFC Championship game last Sunday.
It didn’t take long for Bridgewater to find his next career step. Bridgewater will be the new football coach at Miami Northwestern high school. It’s his alma mater, and the move had been anticipated for some time.
Best of luck to Bridgewater, whose time in Detroit consisted of exactly three snaps of kneeldowns in victory formation. He was a nice veteran backup to Jared Goff and a mentor to rookie Hendon Hooker, who is expected to the over as the No. 2 in 2024.
Good for Teddy Bridgewater: the former New Orleans Saints quarterback has been hired to coach his Miami high school football team
Good for Teddy Bridgewater: the former New Orleans Saints quarterback has been hired to coach his Miami high school football team, per High School FN’s Andy Villamarzo. Bridgewater is retiring from the NFL after finishing his career on the Detroit Lions. Now he’s going back to Miami Northwestern Senior High.
Expect him to be a popular fit at his alma mater; 20 minutes away is Bunche Park, where he played youth football growing up, and where the field was named after him last summer. Bridgewater had previously announced his plans to retire and turn to coaching after the 2023 season. That he gets to go home to South Florida and continue his football life is very cool to see.
Bridgewater earned his degree in Sports Administration at Louisville before turning pro, so this is something he’s been planning a long time. He’s been a fan-favorite everywhere he goes, including New Orleans, and he’s in a good position now to be a positive influence on the next generation.
