Teddy Bridgewater's championship run continues with return to Lions

The Detroit Lions are chasing the franchise's first Super Bowl championship and its first NFL crown since 1957. On Thursday, they added a player who is still basking in the glow of leading a title-winning run.

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Teddy Bridgewater retired from the NFL after spending last season with the Lions, and he returned to his high school alma mater, Miami Northwestern, to become its head football coach. The 32-year-old capped a dramatic turnaround two weekends ago by leading the Bulls, who were 4-6 last year, to the Division 3A Florida High School Athletic Association championship.

Bridgewater had openly talked about resuming his playing career in the NFL. ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported that the former Pro Bowl QB had been contacted about NFL assistant coach opportunities, but Bridgewater's focus is "to try to win a championship as a player with the Lions."

"I've been in contact with Teddy for a while, and it was something that was always potentially a possibility," Campbell told reporters Thursday. "We all know what Teddy's been doing down there and giving back to his community. They won a championship down there, so his debut as coaching worked out pretty dang good.

"But just to be able to add somebody back here that's got experience — he's staying in shape, he's been throwing, just get him worked back in here a little bit — it just brings a level of professionalism, veteran presence, somebody that's great for our team, that's great for the position."

Campbell said Bridgewater's arrival does not impact the status of Hendon Hooker, the 2023 third-round pick who's been the backup QB to Jared Goff. The 26-year-old Hooker has only thrown nine passes in his two NFL seasons, all in mop-up duty this year.

"Doesn't mean we're disappointed in Hooker. That's not what this means," Campbell said. "It just means (Bridgewater) gives us somebody that's played a lot in the NFL. We're getting ready for the playoffs, and so it'll be good to get him back in the fold with us."

Goff said he was "cool" with the Lions bringing back Bridgewater, who's passed for 15,120 yards and 75 touchdowns in nine seasons.

"State champ Teddy Bridgewater is what we call him now," Goff said. "But yeah, he's a valuable asset to our team and I love having him in the quarterback room and he's great to have around."

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