Rumors have connected the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to nearly every NFL quarterback, but there is one player who the team admitted they had their eyes on prior to Tom Brady’s move south: Teddy Bridgewater. The Broncos quarterback is once again being linked to the Bucs following Brady’s retirement. According to the CBS Sports’ odds, Bridgewater is the favorite to be the Buccaneers starting quarterback in Week 1 at +400.

Bridgewater played on an affordable one-year, $4.4 million contract in 2021 and will be a free agent this offseason. The veteran quarterback posted 3,052 yards, 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing 66.9% of his passes in his 14 appearances during the 2021 season. Bridgewater had difficulty holding onto the Broncos starting job this season, but a strong argument can be made that he would be in a much better position in Tampa given the quality of offensive weapons on the roster.

After Bridgewater led the Saints to victory over the Buccaneers in 2019, Arians praised the quarterback as a “good, solid player.”

“I’ve always loved Teddy,” Arians said on October 6, 2019, per USA Today. “He’s a good, solid player and should be a starter in this league.”

The Buccaneers Are Predicted to Sign Bridgewater

CBS Sports is not the only outlet to link Bridgewater to the Buccaneers. Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox made quarterback predictions for the NFL offseason and has the Bucs signing Bridgewater.

“However, this doesn’t mean that Bridgewater cannot be a serviceable starter for a different team in 2022,” Knox explained on January 31.