Former NFL First-Round Draft Pick Accepts High School Coaching Job

Recently retired NFL quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, who spent this past season as a backup to Jared Goff for the Detroit Lions, has been hired as the new head football coach at his alma mater, Miami Northwestern High School. The news was first shared by The Portal 305 on Instagram.

Bridgewater announced in December that this year would be his last in the NFL, and that he intended to become a coach once he officially hung up his cleats. Now that dream of a second career for Bridgewater has quickly become a reality.

The 31-year-old began his NFL career as a first-round pick in 2014 with the Minnesota Vikings, but his time in the NFL went sideways when he severely injured his knee during training camp ahead of the ’16 season. Bridgewater tore his ACL and dislocated his knee, leading to a long recovery process. He was never quite the same after the injury, but was serviceable enough to have a spot on multiple NFL rosters.

Bridgewater played in 79 career games, including 65 starts. He completed 66.4% of his passes for 15,120 yards and 75 touchdowns to 47 interceptions in his career, which included stops with the Vikings, Lions, New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos and Miami Dolphins.