NFL teams
Ben Goessling, ESPN Staff Writer 10y

Teddy Bridgewater injury not serious

NFL, Minnesota Vikings

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- The Minnesota Vikings still have reason to be optimistic that Teddy Bridgewater will be available for their game in Green Bay on Thursday night.

An MRI on Bridgewater's sprained left ankle showed no significant damage, coach Mike Zimmer said Monday. He added that Bridgewater was feeling "a lot better" a day after he was injured in a 41-28 win against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday and said he's hopeful Bridgewater will play at Lambeau Field on Thursday.

Bridgewater, however, did not practice Monday.

By many statistical metrics, Bridgewater had the best debut by a starting quarterback in Vikings history Sunday. He set team records for the most passing yards, most completions and highest passer rating by a rookie in his first start and joined Robert Griffin III as the only quarterbacks to throw for more than 300 yards without an interception in their first start over the past decade.

Bridgewater became the first quarterback in team history to register a fourth-quarter comeback in his debut, bringing the Vikings back from a one-point deficit after they blew a 27-14 lead in the third quarter.

He passed for 317 yards and a key two-point conversion and rushed for 27 yards and a touchdown.

Bridgewater's left foot rolled underneath him when he tried to cut on a run before being tackled at the 1-yard line early in the fourth quarter.

After the game, he was walking without a significant limp and said he thought he could have returned to the game if necessary.

If Bridgewater isn't able to start Thursday, Christian Ponder would get the call for the Vikings, but the rookie quarterback cited one of his most memorable college victories as an example of how he's done this before.

"It's going to be very difficult, but it's something that happened in college," Bridgewater said. "When I was in college [in 2012], I got hurt on a Saturday [breaking his left wrist and spraining his right ankle] and had the University of Rutgers on a short week, on a Thursday also. I think in this situation, I'm just going to have to put extra time in the training room, spend as much time as I can around the facility and in the training room, try to get ready for Thursday."

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