The Denver Broncos have a new quarterback. The news came down Wednesday afternoon that the Broncos acquired veteran quarterback Teddy Bridgewater from the Carolina Panthers in exchange for a 2021 sixth-round draft pick.
The #Panthers are trading QB Teddy Bridgewater to the #Broncos for a sixth-round draft pick, per source.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) April 28, 2021
Bridgewater will come in and should immediately compete for the starting job with youngster Drew Lock. According to various reporters, the acquisition of Bridgewater DOES NOT take the Broncos out of the running for a quarterback during Thursday’s draft. As it stands, the Broncos currently own the ninth overall pick in the draft, and there was mounting speculation that Denver was looking to take a quarterback.
Talking to multiple sources on this: Bridgewater acquired to compete for starting job. Gives Broncos more flexibility in draft, but does not rule out QB in 1st round. The sixth-rounder going to Panthers is in this year's draft. So it will be Bridgewater and someone vying for spot
— Troy Renck (@TroyRenck) April 28, 2021
This is the first big move of George Paton’s tenure as Denver Broncos General Manager. Paton was a member of the Minnesota Vikings front office when the franchise selected Bridgewater in the 2014 draft, so there is a clear connection between player and front office.
Bridgewater is an established quarterback in the NFL, having played for the Vikings, Panthers, New Orleans Saints, and now he will suit up for the orange and blue.
Carolina finished with a 5-11 record last season under Bridgewater and first-year head coach Matt Rhule. With that, Bridgewater was without his top weapon, running back Christian McCaffrey, for a majority of the season.
The Panthers acquired Sam Darnold from the New York Jets earlier this offseason, so offloading Bridgewater was an expected move from the Panthers. Assuming Bridgewater starts for the Broncos at some point, he will become the 10th different player to start under center for the orange and blue.