Report: Jaguars could be interested in Teddy Bridgewater

The Jacksonville Jaguars are said to have some interest in New Orleans Saints backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater as free agency begins March 13.

As professional wrestling announcer Jim Ross would say about NFL free agency, business is about to pick up. After releasing veteran players on Friday, which saved the team more than $30 million in cap space, the Jacksonville Jaguars are ready to sign a few players, including a veteran quarterback. But it might not be the one everyone has been talking about since the end of the 2018 season.

Reports from several outlets, including Saints Wire and News4Jax.com, the Jaguars could be changing their mind on who will play under center this coming year. Is Teddy Bridgwater the signal caller the team is now focusing on?

The move would mean the team does not sign former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles, which has been rumored by several outlets for weeks.

"Per John Sigler, “The free agency outlook for New Orleans Saints quarterback Teddy Bridgewater is slim, but Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that one team could be in the hunt for his services: the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jacksonville has been connected to Philadelphia Eagles backup Nick Foles, Super Bowl LII MVP and soon-to-be free agent, but Schefter suggests that is hardly a done deal.”"

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Bridgewater has been connected to the Jaguars since last offseason when he was a member of the New York Jets. Rumors about a potential deal for Bridgewater involving Dante Fowler, Jr. never materialized. Bridgewater, who was in the same draft class as Blake Bortles, who may be released by the Jaguars, was traded to the Saints prior to the NFL preseason in 2018.

Because free agency cannot begin until Wednesday and there are no “formal” negotiations, there are still plenty of possibilities that the Jaguars will sign someone other than Foles, who has seen the market for his services dwindle in recent weeks.

"“Honestly, this shouldn’t be surprising. No formal negotiations between free agents and teams can begin until Monday, March 11, so any arrangement that the Jaguars and Foles already had in place would result in thunderous tampering penalties from the league office. Of course the Jaguars are going to look at other free agent quarterbacks,” Sigler added."

Two quarterbacks thought to possibly be on the Jaguars list of potential quarterbacks – Joe Flacco and Case Keenum – have been traded, although not finalized, to Denver and Washington. There could be other signal callers the team’s front office would look to, including Ryan Tannehill if the Miami Dolphins release him and Ryan Fitzpatrick, who is scheduled to become a free agent after playing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Per Brian Jackson of news4jax.com, the last season as a starter for Bridgewater came in 2015 with the Minnesota Vikings, where he threw for 3.231 yards, 14 TDs and 9 INTs.

I agree with Sigler’s assessment that while the move to sign Bridgewater would make sense and prove to be cheaper for the organization, the Jaguars could be using this as a negoatiation tactic. Foles, who has been clearly defined as the best free agent quarterback on the market, could be seeking a deal that has been rumored to be in upwards of $20 million per season.