On March 17th, 2020 the Carolina Panthers signed former New Orleans Saints backup QB Teddy Bridgewater for $63 Million.
When the Saints starting quarterback, Drew Brees, injured his thumb on a play vs the LA Rams, Bridgwater stepped in and finished the game for him. Even though they lost, Bridgewater won the Saints next 5 games vs some decent opponents (including Seattle and Dallas).
Bridgewater was not bad in Fantasy Football either last season. In those 5 games he played he averaged 17.1 fantasy points a game in standard leagues with a high of 28.3 points vs the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a low of 7.5 points vs the Dallas Cowboys (this was his first legitimate start as the Saints starting QB after Brees was injured).
In those 5 games Bridgewater played in, his stats were very solid. Teddy threw for 1,384 yards, 9 TDs and 2 INTs (he also had a completion rate of 67.9% which would have made him 6th overall last season). At this rate he would have ended the season with 28 TDs, 4,428.8 yards, and 6 INTs. This would have made him at the least the *6th best QB last season.
*With 28 TDs he would have been 5th last year above Jimmy Garrapolo in TDs, with 4,4228.8 yards he would have been 6th in yards, and would have tied with Lamar Jackson, Kirk Cousins, and Ryan Tannehill with 6 INTs last season.
These stats show Bridgewater's potential is there. So with the right offense around him, he should be able to do these numbers if not better... and I think Carolina is that place. Essentially he has the perfect scenario going for him right now. The reasons include he is under a young bright-minded Offensive Coordinator in Joe Brady, the Panthers had a top 10 O-line in 2019, and the Panthers have been surrounding him with very talented players.
In my opinion the Receivers are just as important to the offense as the coordinator is for Bridgewater's season next year. At the moment, it looks like the Panthers are essentially replicating the 2019 Louisiana State University pro-style offense that won LSU the NCAA national championship (it's funny because they actually mirrored how the Saints offense was which was the team that* Joe Brady worked under before his only year at LSU). The Panthers will essentially be doing the same thing LSU did by using another group of underrated, speedy, reliable, and skilled personell like the tigers offense had. With guys like DJ Moore, Robby Anderson, and Curtis Samuel as the go-to WRs (in that order) Just like LSU Tigers had with WRs Ja'Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson, and Terrance Marshal to work with at LSU. Because of this similarity in how their offense will be conducted as well as tailoring their game plan around Bridgewater, Teddy should be able to put up a similar performances with how he played last year with the Saints. Not to mention with the help of Pro-bowl RB Christian McCaffrey in the backfield, McCaffrey will not only take pressure off the new panthers QB with his running ability, but will also be yet again a valued ally in the passing game as an easy target for Bridgewater.
Just because Bridgewater has the WRs, the RB, and a good play caller doesn't mean they will mirror exactly what happened last season for LSU (QB had 5,671 yards, 60 TDs, and 6 INTs). However, if they play to Bridgewater's strengths with his accurate passing ability for short and intermediate routes, and Bridgewater gets to work on his long ball and develops a chemistry with his new weapons in the offseason, not only will Bridgewater have an elite 2020 season, but the Panthers WRs and McCafferey are gonna look to be feasting next season (*cough cough getting a lot of targets next season cough cough). Combining the skill players and the similar offense he knew with the Saints will definitely help Bridgewater reach a top 6 spot in fantasy football next season in both standard and PPR leagues. I look forward to watching him and this team play next season and I ask you to consider taking a chance on him next season if he is the top quarterback available to you.
2020 Stats Prediction:
QB Teddy Bridgewater: 4,450 passing yards 32 TDs, 10 INTs
2020 Draft prediction:
Any where from the 8th to 12th round depending on the number of players in your league and the other participants feelings for him in your league.
Before Joe?
Hmmmm...maybe