Tampa Bay Buccaneers backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater had appeared in three games in the 2025 NFL season before taking over the duties under center in the middle of Sunday night's meeting with the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
But it was only during the Rams game that Bridgewater managed to complete his first pass of the season.
In fact, he had not completed a pass in the NFL in 1,422 days before finding Buccaneers tight end Cade Otton for a nice pickup in the third quarter against Los Angeles, per Ralph Vacchiano of Fox Sports.
“Teddy Bridgewater's 12-yard completion to TE Cade Otton was his first completed pass since 2022. He also hadn't attempted a pass since 2022,” wrote Vacchiano in a social media post on X, formerly Twitter.
Bridgewater was forced to put on his helmet and take the field after Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield exited the contest with an apparent shoulder injury. Mayfield was initially labeled doubtful to return in the second half before ultimately being ruled out for the rest of the night, thus leaving the task of orchestrating Tampa Bay's offense on the field to Bridgewater.
Bridgewater was still with the Miami Dolphins when he last completed a pass in the league prior to Week 12's edition of Sunday Night Football. That was on Jan. 2, 2022, when he went 12-for-19 for a touchdown and an interception in a 23-21 loss on the road at the hands of Mac Jones and the New England Patriots.
As for his performance versus the Rams, the former Louisville Cardinals star signal-caller, who just turned 33 years old on Nov. 10, completed eight of his 15 throws for 62 passing yards with zero touchdowns and no interceptions. He was sacked twice for a loss of 21 yards and rushed once for a gain of six yards, as the Buccaneers suffered a 34-7 loss.
Tampa Bay has now lost three games in a row, dropping to 6-5 after going 5-1 to start the 2025 campaign.
The Buccaneers still lead the NFC South standings, but a win this Monday by the Carolina Panthers would have Tampa Bay sliding down to the second spot in the division.
