By Jeff Nowak | The Advocate / Picayune
Teddy Bridgewater spent one season as the lead dog in an NFL team's quarterback room, but that is the case no longer with the Carolina Panthers swinging a trade for Sam Darnold.
The move leaves the former New Orleans Saints quarterback in an oddly familiar situation. Before the 28-year-old signed his 3-year, $63 million deal with the Panthers, he spent two seasons as the backup to Drew Brees in New Orleans, where he emerged as a fan-favorite.
But the Darnold trade is familiar in another way: Bridgewater's arrival in New Orleans also came through a trade with the New York Jets. That swap occurred during the 2018 preseason, which Bridgewater began as Darnold's backup.
The Saints acquired Bridgewater and a 2019 6th-round pick in exchange for their third-round selection that season. In this year's trade the Jets received a 6th-round selection in the upcoming draft, along with the Panthers 2nd- and 4th-round picks in the 2022 draft.
Bridgewater went 5-0 as a starter for the Saints in 2019 with Brees recovering from thumb surgery, but opted to leave for Carolina with Brees choosing to return for another season. The backup role was filled by former Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston, who has since re-signed with the Saints and appears destined for an offseason battle for the starting job with Taysom Hill.
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