The Carolina Panthers are expected to acquire a new franchise quarterback this offseason, whether by trade or the draft. That’s because Teddy Bridgewater is on the trade block only one season into his three-year, $63 million contract. So, what went wrong? Former Carolina quarterback Jake Delhomme says he thinks Bridgewater fell into the classic QB trap of trying to do too much.
Here’s how he assessed Bridgewater’s season, per the Charlotte Obsever.
“I just think from watching Teddy and watching the quarterback play because I have fallen into that trap many times, sometimes you try to do too much, and it comes back to bite you. I just think Teddy was trying too much … And I just think it became pressing.”
Asked what specifically Teddy could do to improve if he winds up starting again in the 2021 season, Delhomme said this:
“Well, I think the biggest thing in his mind is you want to have more touchdown passes and fewer interceptions and don’t turn the ball over, fumble-wise. As a quarterback, you never want to give it away.”
Sounds obvious, but of course that’s easier said than done. Bridgewater’s 15 touchdown passes in 2020 were a career-high, which doesn’t bode well for his future as a starter in this league. Limiting the turnovers that troubled him would obviously help, but Bridgewater’s ceiling is relatively limited by his athleticism and more importantly a lack of aggressiveness or killer instinct compared to other franchise QBs around the league.
Delhomme told the Observer he thinks the team would be fine if they started Bridgewater in 2021 if they added more pieces around him.
While that’s probably true, it also speaks to the dilemma with Teddy’s game. Some quarterbacks need all the pieces around them to have a successful season – others can transcend mediocre teammates and even awful coaching to lead their teams to wins. Until the Panthers can find a QB like that, they should keep looking.
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