It appears that the Carolina Panthers are prepared to move on from Cam Newton, agreeing to terms with Teddy Bridgewater to a three-year deal. How will Bridgewater fare in Carolina? Our analysts offer their thoughts on the move:
Practice mock drafts with our FREE Dynasty Draft Simulator
Q1. What is the fantasy football impact of Teddy Bridgewater signing with the Carolina Panthers?
It’s clear the Panthers are preparing to move on from Cam Newton, though he does have one year left on his contract, so we must prepare for both scenarios. Assuming Newton is gone, Bridgewater takes over for new head coach Matt Rhule, which comes with a high degree of uncertainty, as we’ve never seen his offense in the NFL. What we do know is that he’ll have D.J. Moore, Curtis Samuel, Christian McCaffrey, and Ian Thomas as his primary receiving options, which is not a bad scenario to walk into. It’s also worth noting Bridgewater already knows the basic offense that offensive coordinator Joe Brady will use, as he spent time with him in New Orleans. Bridgewater isn’t someone you should be drafting outside of 2QB leagues, as his mobility is limited, and this offense revolves around McCaffrey.
-Mike Tagliere (@MikeTagliereNFL)
As of right now, we don’t know what Cam Newton‘s future holds. The Panthers have yet to trade Newton, so they will have both QBs on their roster for the foreseeable future. With the money Carolina is giving Bridgewater though, we have to assume that he’s going to be the starter. Teddy’s a quality starter in the NFL and now is reunited with OC Joe Brady in Carolina. This is the same offense that Joe Burrow thrived in at LSU this past CFB season and Teddy already has knowledge of the verbiage, playbook, etc. Bridgewater now moves into QB2 territory and is an extremely solid QB2 option in SuperFlex leagues.
-Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
That escalated quickly. It certainly appears that Bridgewater will start for the Panthers given his contract and the rumors that Cam Newton will be allowed to seek a trade. No matter where he went, Bridgewater was never going to be a QB1. But he will certainly be walking into a plus-situation, with several dynamic weapons like Christian McCaffrey and D.J. Moore. We don’t quite know what the Carolina offense will look like under Matt Rhule and Joe Brady, but it’s a good bet that Bridgewater will be a bye-week fill-in and a startable option in two-quarterback leagues.
-Dan Harris (@danharris80)
Q2. Who else is impacted by Bridgewater’s signing from a fantasy perspective?
This move will certainly benefit someone like D.J. Moore, who goes from Cam Newton (career completion percentage of 59.6 percent), Kyle Allen, Will Grier, and Taylor Heinicke, to Bridgewater who completed 67.9 percent of his passes in relief of Drew Brees in 2019. We also saw him lean on Michael Thomas rather heavily. In Weeks 2 through 7, Thomas saw 65 targets in a six-game stretch, and a massive 33.3 percent target share. Moore should be on the high-end WR2 radar with the potential to sneak into the WR1 conversation.
-Mike Tagliere (@MikeTagliereNFL)
This is great news for DJ Moore and Curtis Samuel, who were going to be huge question marks going into 2020 if Newton wasn’t healthy and ready to go. Moore is the biggest benefactor here though and should become a favorite target for Teddy. The whole offense sees a slight boost from a fantasy perspective though…as long as Christian McCaffrey doesn’t hold out in 2020.
-Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
Given Cam Newton‘s accuracy issues in recent seasons and Kyle Allen‘s and Will Grier‘s shaky play last year, the move should only benefit D.J. Moore and Curtis Samuel. Bridgewater isn’t an elite quarterback but he’s fairly accurate and had a high completion percentage last year. Moore should remain a WR1, while Samuel should start creeping closer to the WR3 range.
-Dan Harris (@danharris80)
Other Rapid Reaction Posts
- DeAndre Hopkins, David Johnson Dealt in Blockbuster
- Stefon Diggs Traded to Bills
- Amari Cooper, Dak Prescott Remain in Dallas
- Austin Hooper to the Browns
- Teddy Bridgewater Signing With Panthers
- Drew Brees Remains With Saints
- Derrick Henry Returns to Titans
- A.J. Green Franchised by Bengals
- Ryan Tannehill Re-Signs With Titans
Practice mock drafts with our FREE Dynasty Draft Simulator
Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | TuneIn | RSS