Broncos not benching Teddy Bridgewater despite 'business decision' against Eagles
The lowlight for the Denver Broncos during their 30-13 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday that dropped them to 5-5 on the season involved quarterback Teddy Bridgewater making what some would refer to as a "business decision" and not even attempting to stop Philadelphia cornerback Darius Slay from returning a fumble for a touchdown that put the game out of reach:
Some, such as Ryan O’Halloran and Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post, have suggested following that moment to forget that Broncos coach Vic Fangio should bench Bridgewater and start Drew Lock after the bye when Denver faces the Los Angeles Chargers on Nov. 28. However, Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk notes Fangio told reporters Monday he isn't making a switch at the position. Fangio did admit, though, that he "would have liked to see Teddy at least make a play at the guy."
Bridgewater insisted Sunday he did not purposely avoid making a tackle:
"We watched it today as a team, and coach pointed it out, that, hey, my effort had to be better there, and I totally agree. That’s not the type of tape that I want to put out there," Bridgewater said Monday, per Troy Renck of Denver7 News. "I’m right there. Opportunity to just dive, sacrifice, do whatever I can to help the team in that moment. And I own up to it. It’s unacceptable as a football player, as a member of this team … I’ve got to accept the fact that I didn’t give everything I had in me."
It's worth mentioning that Bridgewater would hardly be the only quarterback who would shy away from such contact if presented with a similar situation. Cleveland Browns starting signal-caller Baker Mayfield suffered a significant shoulder injury attempting to make a tackle back in Week 2 of the campaign:
Perhaps Bridgewater will at least pretend to slow the ball-carrier down if he's on the field for another turnover this season.
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