Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater signed with the Detroit Lions this offseason, and he was given what jersey number?
The Detroit Lions seemingly have their quarterback for the near future in Jared Goff, who is coming off of a really good 2022 campaign. However, there was a need for proven depth behind him, as third-round draft pick Hendon Hooker is recovering from a torn ACL suffered late in the 2022 college football season. That left the Lions with Nate Sudfeld and rookie Adrian Martinez as the options behind Goff. So, the Lions decided to bring in and eventually sign veteran quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.
Lions fans didn't get to see Bridgewater play, considering he just signed on with the team. When they do this preseason, they will see Bridgewater sport a weird number.
While speaking with reporters on Monday, Bridgewater was sporting a red jersey that didn't feature a number. When asked about it, Bridgewater revealed that he will wear the No. 50 in the preseason.
The video below comes courtesy of ESPN's Eric Woodyard.
Lions: Teddy Bridgewater to wear the No. 50 during preseason
Bridgewater is wearing this number, because there are no quarterback-eligible numbers available as of now. A quarterback is eligible to wear any number between 0-19. All of those numbers are taken when you look at the team's roster page. Hooker is wearing the No. 12 but is currently on the non-football injury (NFI) list, located at the bottom of the page.
Since entering the NFL, Bridgewater has worn the No. 5. That includes the Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos, and Miami Dolphins. Currently, running back David Montgomery is wearing the No. 5, and it's unknown if he would switch the number with Bridgewater.
This isn't the first time that a quarterback notably wore the No. 50 during training camp. Back in 2021, New England Patriots first-round pick Mac Jones was spotted wearing the No. 50. He eventually changed it to No. 10 before the start of the regular season.
Last season, Bridgewater played five games for the Dolphins, including two starts, as he filled in for Tua Tagovailoa. In that stretch of games, Bridgewater threw for 683 yards, four touchdowns, and four interceptions while completing 62.0 percent of his passes.
As of now, Bridgewater will wear the No. 50. Down the road until a quarterback-eligible number becomes available.
