ALLEN PARK, Mich. – Of all the feedback that Teddy Bridgewater has had since coming out of retirement last month to rejoin the Detroit Lions, there’s nothing quite like the reaction he’s had from his kids.
The kids would be the players at Miami Northwestern High School whom Bridgewater, 32, recently coached to a Class 3A state championship in his debut season at his alma mater.
Seeing their head coach back in the NFL – the Lions added the veteran as an emergency backup quarterback for their playoff run – adds another layer to the connection.
“They love it,” Bridgewater told USA TODAY Sports. “That’s good feedback. Especially now, where the kids I coached can go to college and tell the stories about how cool Teddy Bridgewater was. They can get some ‘cool points.’ ”
Sitting at a card table in the Lions locker room after practice, Bridgewater had just finished a FaceTime chat with one of his kids, DeAngelo Thompson, a defensive end who is an early enrollee at Syracuse. The exchange included a bit of show-and-tell.
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“I was just talking to him and he showed the camera to one of his teammates, who’s also an early enrollee, and he’s like, ‘Look, this is my coach right here!’ ” Bridgewater added.
No, it’s not every day that a high school coach doubles as an NFL quarterback. Even though he “retired” from the NFL after last season, he maintains that his plan all along was to return later this season because he was still capable of playing. So, he stayed in shape and kept his throwing arm sharp while coaching the kids. Detroit brought him back prior to Week 17.
Who does that?
“Just the guy you’re talking to,” Jared Goff, the Lions starting quarterback, chimed in from his corner locker. “He’s the first ever. Coach Teddy.”
It’s unknown whether Bridgewater is indeed the first, but he’s undoubtedly unique. No doubt, he’s the most interesting backup quarterback in the NFL playoffs. Weeks after finishing up with a state crown, the man voted as Florida’s Coach of the Year is chasing another championship. It’s another compelling chapter to Bridgewater’s unusual journey. He’s had stints with six NFL teams since the Minnesota Vikings drafted him in the first round from Louisville in 2014. He came back from a gruesome knee injury suffered in 2017 that threatened his career. In 2018, he filled in for an injured Drew Brees and won all five of his starts for the New Orleans Saints – when Lions coach Dan Campbell and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn were members of Sean Payton’s staff.
Mention Campbell and Glenn, and Bridgewater perks up. They are essential reasons linked to his return at this critical time.
“Those are my dogs, man!” Bridgewater said. “Dan’s been a gangster since he had that tight end room with the Saints, and before that with all the other places he’s been. And those two guys, we all have the same mentor.”
That would be Bill Parcells, the Hall of Fame coach who lives in Florida. Bridgewater became connected to Parcells through Abram Elam, a close adviser who is also close to the coach he played for. Elam made the introduction when Bridgewater went through the draft process.
“If Parcells likes you, you might be a decent person,” Bridgewater said. “I always stayed in touch with him throughout my career. I’m happy to have a guy like him in my corner.
“Parcells is a real G, man,” Bridgewater added, using the slang term for ‘gangster.’ “I love him. Just how supportive he’s been. He’s always straight forward with you. He ain’t going to sugarcoat it.”
The same goes for Campbell and Glenn. Straight- shooters. Sure, Bridgewater incorporated elements of their methods as he embarked on his coaching career. But he also recognizes where to draw a line.
“Yeah, there are some things,” he said. “Yet at the same time, you’re not dealing with adults. So, the way they act toward us, I can’t really go around kids and act that way. They’re not as mature as this locker room.”
Just like he planned to return to the NFL this season for a playoff run, years ago he envisioned returning to coach at his alma mater. He said it fulfills a promise to his challenged community, where’s he’s also revered as the NFL player who routinely stayed connected. Bridgewater is the man who would pull up unannounced in a U-Haul truck and give away toys, clothes, food and other essentials. Coaching is another way of giving back.
“I was once in that locker room that I coach in,” said Bridgewater, who was raised by a single mother, Rose. “I know the level of maturity that I had when I was 14, 15, 16, 17. And I knew that I still needed to grow up a little bit. I had some great coaches, but if I had other extensive male figures in my life, I would’ve been even more mature. So, I approach them from that aspect. Because really, honestly, I’m trying to help these kids make it past Miami, make it outside the city.”
As much as the Lions have added a layer of insurance (Campbell hasn’t revealed whether Bridgewater will supplant Hendon Hooker as the No. 2 quarterback or remain as the emergency No. 3 option for the playoffs), there’s the added value of his presence in the locker room. Like with the kids, Bridgewater sees his purpose as an influence goes beyond football.
“Those kids have untapped potential,” Bridgewater said, “I’m placed in their life to help them tap into that source, to help them go far. It’s the same in his locker room. Not everyone is a superstar. Not everyone is a true pro. So, I still find myself tapping into some of these young guys, helping them find that stability in this league.”
He expresses an interest in third-year receiver Jameson Williams, who just produced his first 1,000-yard season – on the fewest receptions of any 1,000-yard receiver this season, Bridgewater noted in a recent social media post – but has already been suspended twice by the NFL for off-the-field issues. Bridgewater told Williams how he witnessed former Vikings teammate Stefon Diggs put in the work and master the details to rise from a fifth-round pick to become an All-Pro.
“It’s just so many things that you see in a Jameson Williams, who has all the potential in the world,” Bridgewater said.
His message to Williams: “Stef did it this way. You’re not Stef – it’s a different case with ever player – but if you do it this way, I promise you, you can have the same success and be a star in this league.”
No doubt, there are younger teammates willing to take heed to the vet’s advice. Rookie cornerback Terrion Arnold told Bridgewater that he wanted to “give him his flowers now” as a memory sticks from watching him star in college.
“I’ll never forget when he was playing at Louisville, he got his helmet knocked off and then he got up smiling,” Arnold recalled. “It’s kind of a testament to all the trials and tribulations he’s had. He just faces them with a clear head…
Arnold added: “Even with him just joining the locker room and having that old-school vibe and being a mentor, he’s a great guy to be around.”
For all of that, the competitive spirit still burns with Bridgewater. Sure, the top-seeded Lions brought him back as insurance, and if his impact is primarily in a supporting role behind the scenes, including practices, it would be substantial.
Yet winning clearly matters. That is apparent as he reflects on guiding the kids to the state crown with a 12-2 record.
“It was everything,” Bridgewater said. ‘You deal with so much hate that you’ve got to block out from people who watched you grow up. You deal with so many hidden agendas. So many people who want to see you fail. It’s a bunch of crabs in a bucket.”
He’s talking about doubters, people who questioned why he got the high school job in the first place and piled on with negativity after a couple of close, early-season losses.
“So, to have the type of success we had as a team, it’s the ultimate ‘F-you’ to everybody who had something negative to say or was hoping that things fell apart,” he said. “Now my kids get to walk around as champions. Like I told everybody, when you see those kids, address them as champs.”
Now the coach is positioned to make it a double crown, so to speak. He’s hoping this comeback ends in the winner’s circle of Super Bowl 59, in New Orleans of all places.
“New Orleans is my second home,” he said. “They love me down there. I did win five games for ‘em, you know.”
And maybe soon they can also address Bridgewater as a champ – in more ways than one.
Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Jarrett Bell on X, @JarrettBell