Teddy Bridgewater – July 30, 2022
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Saturday, July 30, 2022
QB Teddy Bridgewater
“It was a great day at training camp, it’s exciting to see the fans out, feel their energy, it’s great to see some of the rookies get the fans going, and the fun factory. It’s great competition out here, guys competing at a high level, it’s great to be a part of.”
(How does it feel to be back home?) – “It feels great. It still feels surreal. I wake up in the morning like ‘man, I got to sleep in my own bed and come to work.’ It’s great. I’m thankful for this opportunity.”
(You do your Christmas in July event yearly. After that you’re usually heading out to go to where you were playing. Did it hit you then, was it a little different knowing after that event you get to come out here on Saturday?) – “Yeah, it definitely did. Like you said, usually when I hit Christmas in July, it’s like the next day I got to get on a plane and travel to whatever city. Knowing that I just get to drive right down the street and come to work feels surreal.”
(The post you made on Instagram a few days ago caught a lot of attention. LeBron James retweeted it out. I’m curious, what was your thinking going into that post? What inspired that?) – “The thing about me is I’m very random. I was really just sitting at home in my driveway and I just started typing. I always post on Facebook. I’m on Facebook because that’s where my family and friends are more active on there. I just posted it because a lot of the kids we come across on my Facebook, they’re in the inner city. They are playing football, playing sports. But even if they are not active in sports they are looking up to different people, and sometimes we misuse our platform. I’m not saying everyone does. But it was something that came to mind, and I started writing hoping that if it could get to one athlete or one teenage athlete, it’s doing it’s job.”
(What, if anything, surprised you about the reaction to what you said?) – “I really didn’t realize it went viral until the next day. I was working out and my QB coach ‘OB’ was like ‘that post you put out went viral, everybody talking about it.’ I’m like, ‘for real?’ When I post on Instagram, I post and get off. I’m not really an Instagram guy.”
(What are some of those experiences that you’ve had growing up in South Florida? How have you seen the kids in South Florida potentially fall through the cracks because they didn’t choose their path?) – “It’s so easy to be influenced nowadays, especially with what you’re seeing on social media and what you’re seeing on television. It’s so easy for the kids to be influenced by the wrong thing. But it’s also so easy for them to be influenced by the right thing. Just growing up down here, I’ve seen the good the bad, the ugly, the pretty. I’m happy that I’m in the position that I’m in. I’m happy that I’m able to drive through the communities, drive through neighborhoods and give my story and remind them that I walked those same sidewalks, attended some of those same schools, been on some of those same streets that they’ve been on, and just give them hope.”
(You were at WR Tutu Atwell’s event a few weeks ago and a couple of your teammates came out. What was that experience like being at Hadley Park?) – “It was great and I’m proud of Tutu for putting together such a great event. Bringing most of the schools from the inner city together at such a young age and so early in his career. He did it at Charles Hadley Park where he spent his optimist days. It’s great to see people on the same field getting along for such a great event.”
(You’re a Bunche Park Cowboy yourself. Can we expect to see some of those games that they have upcoming this year?) – “I’m very active at Bunche Park. I was out there last night after practice. You can definitely look for me on Friday nights at Northwestern games and Saturdays at Bunche Park.”
(A big conversation that’s been going on is about how black quarterbacks have been talked about and perceived in the media. Do you have any thoughts on that?) – “I can’t really speak on it because I don’t know what’s being said. I can’t speak on something that I don’t know what’s being said. I can say as a black quarterback, it’s a unique opportunity. I’m grateful that I’ve been given this opportunity because there might be another Teddy Bridgewater playing down the street at Bunche Park, Gwen Cherry, or somewhere. So I’m happy that I got this opportunity to pave a way.”
(Your social media comments, were you surprised by how big it got? It was a national conversation.) – “Yeah, it surprised me a little bit. I didn’t know what was going on until the next day because once I posted it, I just got off social media.”
(Why was it important for you to post that?) – “Like I said before, there are so many teenagers who are easily influenced by what they see on social media and what they are seeing on television. Just to give them reassurance that it’s ok to do the right thing. Yeah, it’s looked down upon and things like that, but I grew up with a group of guys that went left and made sure I didn’t go left with them. Yeah, I was around them. But at the same time, ‘Hey, Teddy you can’t be around this. Go to football practice.’ That type of stuff. I’m just basically trying to remind them that’s it’s ok to do the right thing.”
