Before the 2016 season began, Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater suffered a horrific knee injury that knocked him out of the year. Minnesota traded for Sam Bradford not just to secure the position this year, but for next season as well.
And the Vikings could need help for even longer. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, there is concern with "doctors around the league" that Bridgewater might not ever make it back to the NFL.
Here's his full report from Sunday morning on NFL Countdown:
Teddy Bridgewater continues to rehab in Minnesota and he is making progress. Nearly two months after he dislocated his knee, Bridgewater is making strides and Vikings officials are pleased with where he's at. But other doctors around the league know there are no guarantees Bridgewater will be able to return to the type of quarterback he was, if he makes it back to the NFL at all.
As one doctor who's worked with NFL teams said this week, 'If he didn't make it back, it wouldn't surprise me. This is a bad injury, about the worse knee injury a player can have.'
These doctors around the league aren't doctors who have intimate medical knowledge of Bridgewater's knee, so it's not entirely fair to believe anyone could really have a full diagnosis of where Bridgewater stands.
Knee injuries are specific to individuals, meaning no one can simply look at what happened to Bridgewater in August and know where he is in October or November, especially as it pertains to how he'll look in 2017 or 2018.
But it's obviously a testament to how terrible the knee injury was that there is concern around the league that Bridgewater might never be the same quarterback he once was. The injury he suffered absolutely put his career in jeopardy.
