Here’s something I did not think I would be typing in 2018: The Jets have too many good quarterbacks.
It’s looking more and more like Sam Darnold will start the year atop the depth chart after a fast start to his NFL career. Veteran Josh McCown is coming off a productive season and is the ideal backup for a rookie starter.
And then there’s Teddy Bridgewater, who has looked like one of the best quarterbacks in the league through the first two weeks of preseason.
Of course, it’s just preseason, but Bridgewater looked the part of a burgeoning franchise quarterback before a knee injury sidelined him for two seasons. Bridgewater was never a guy who relied on his physical gifts to succeed, so it’s no surprise that he’s picked up right where he left off after a two-year hiatus.
Still, Bridgewater is the odd man out in New York. Darnold is the future, and Bridgewater is too valuable of a commodity for the Jets to let waste away on the bench. It’s in the best interest for New York to trade the 2014 first-round pick, and the Daily News is reporting that the team is willing to make a deal.
But where should the Jets ship him off to? Here are five teams that would make sense as trade partners…
1. Jacksonville Jaguars
On paper, trading for Bridgewater makes a ton of sense for the Jaguars. It made even more sense to sign him in the offseason — more sense than giving Blake Bortles a big extension, at least. But that’s what the Jaguars did, and Bortles is back throwing interceptions like this…
Jacksonville doesn’t need a star behind center. But they do need a QB they can trust in critical situations. The coaching staff can say they trust Bortles, but teams that trust their signal callers don’t kneel with 55 seconds left and two timeouts in the AFC Championship game.
Acquiring Bridgewater, who would cost the Jags only $5 million this season, would be a low-risk, high-reward move that could potentially take this team from the periphery of Super Bowl contention to the top of the contenders list. There isn’t one thing (outside of not having his knee explode in a freak accident, that is) that Bortles does better than Bridgewater on a football field.
The Jets QB is more accurate, makes better decisions and moves more efficiently in the pocket.
The Jaguars may want to hold onto their premium draft picks, but throwing Dante Fowler into a trade package (along with, say, a third-round pick) could be enough to convince the Jets to make the deal. The Jags’ Super Bowl window, which is being propped open by the defense, won’t stay open for long. The team needs to take some win-now risks.
2. Denver Broncos
Denver is another team that probably should have explored Bridgewater as an option this offseason but opted to overpay a wild card instead. No matter how high you are on Case Keenum, it’s clear that he’s not a long-term solution. Bridgewater potentially is. At the very least, he’s a competent backup who will keep the team on track if Keenum goes down.
Chad Kelly’s fast start to the preseason may have convinced John Elway that Denver is no longer in the market for a backup quarterback, but we’ve seen plenty of late-round quarterbacks flash in the preseason only to falter when the games start to matter.
3. New England Patriots
Trading Bridgewater to a divisional rival — especially this divisional rival — would be an all-time mistake, but if the Patriots come in with a sweet offer, the Jets have to listen, right?
Now, New England, as good as we expect it to be in 2018, has plenty of holes on its roster and probably wouldn’t want to give up a Day 2 pick to land a player who isn’t guaranteed to see the field over the next few seasons. The Pats would essentially be in the same spot they were in with Jimmy Garoppolo headed into last season.
BUT…
Tom Brady is 41. Even if he does have a few good years left in his body, an injury could end his career at any time. If Brady goes down, the backup is Brian Hoyer. In other words, the season is over if No. 12 isn’t out there.
Bridgewater isn’t going to fill Brady’s shoes, but he’s a good enough quarterback to keep the offense afloat while Bill Belichick works his magic on the other side of the ball. And if he doesn’t play, having a good backup with a high ceiling on the bench isn’t a bad backup plan. Patriots fans seemed to enjoy that set-up before the Jimmy G trade.
4. New Orleans Saints
There were rumblings during the offseason that New Orleans was in the market for a replacement for Drew Brees, but nothing ever came from it. The team passed on Lamar Jackson in the draft and opted for Tom Savage to play the backup role.
The Saints are in win-now mode, so not using valuable resources for a reserve makes a lot of sense. Still, the front office has to start thinking about life after Brees. Why not try to land a quarterback with the potential to fill that role without having to use a first-rounder in order to do so? A trade for Bridgewater may allow the Saints to do just that.
Bridgewater would be a perfect fit in Sean Payton’s offense. Like Brees, he’s a master at working the pocket and using feints to open up throwing windows.
He’s also accurate and can read a defense quickly. Give him a year to learn the offense and soak up Brees’ wisdom, and the Saints offense wouldn’t miss a beat after losing the best player in franchise history. How often does that happen?
5. New York Giants
Eli Manning’s days as a viable franchise quarterback are done. The team almost has to move on from him after this season. And while Kyle Lauletta looks like a potential Eli replacement, it would behoove the team to exhaust all options when looking for its next quarterback after passing on the this year’s class of top prospects.
If Lauletta isn’t the answer and the team doesn’t land Bridgewater, it’s going to take a serious investment in order to land a top rookie next offseason — especially if the Giants are as good as they think they will be in 2018.
