The Minnesota Vikings were dealt some bad news Tuesday. ESPN’s Ben Goessling initially reported that the team cut a practice short when quarterback Teddy Bridgewater went down on a non-contact play.
https://twitter.com/GoesslingESPN/status/770697400977534976
Goessling also added that “players dropped to one knee in prayer.”
Brian Murphy of The St. Paul Pioneer Press added that the players were visibly angry.
Bad scene. Bridgewater down in pocket grabbing left knee. Players freaked out, swearing and praying. Immobilized. Practice halted #Vikings
— Brian Murphy (@murphmedia_) August 30, 2016
Now comes this directly from the Vikings themselves.
Vikings' HC Mike Zimmer said QB Teddy Bridgewater "a significant knee injury." Still going through testing.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 30, 2016
The fear here is that the third-year quarterback tore his ACL. Without getting into too much in terms of conjecture, that would fit in with the reaction of his teammates during practice.
This is an absolutely major blow for a team that had Super Bowl expectations heading into the 2016 season. The defending NFC North champions were seen as one of the best young squads in the NFL heading into the regular year.
With Teddy now potentially lost for the season, the Vikings will have to turn to veteran Shaun Hill over the short term.
Though, we can surely expect the team to be in the market for a veteran backup between now and the start of the regular season.
Bridgewater started all 16 games for the Vikings last season, throwing for 3,231 yards with 14 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
We will have more information as it becomes available.