Teddy Bridgewater likely to rejoin Vikings active roster after bye

The Minnesota Vikings can activate Teddy Bridgewater this coming week, and that’s just what they plan to do.

It’s been over 14 months since Teddy Bridgewater suffered a severe left knee injury in a late preseason practice. But all indications are he has progressed in his recovery without setbacks, and he began practicing on Oct. 18 immediately after the required six weeks on the PUP list.

That day also started a three-week window for the Minnesota Vikings to activate him this season, and that date is coming on Wednesday.

According to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, the Vikings plan to activate Bridgewater this week and put him on the active roster. The team is on a bye this week, so Bridgewater is in line to be in uniform in Week 10 against the Washington Redskins.

The Vikings are in the driver’s seat in the NFC North right now at 6-2. The Green Bay Packers (4-3) and Detroit Lions (3-4) play Monday night, and if the Lions win both of those teams will be two back of Minnesota in the win column.

Case Keenum has a 4-2 record as a starter since Sam Bradford emerged from Week 1 with a knee injury, while completing close to 64 percent of his passes with a 7:3 touchdown-to-interception ratio. As long as he’s playing well and the Vikings are winning games, a quarterback switch should not be imminent.

But with Bridgewater now on track to be in uniform, Keenum’s leash may get a lot shorter if he struggles out of the gate the way he did in Week 7 and Week 8.

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Bridgewater being on the 53-man roster does not necessarily mean he’ll start, in Week 10 or ever down the road this season. But with Bradford’s knee injury making him a non-entity since he tried to play in Week 5, the Vikings have been operating with Kyle Sloter as Keenum’s backup. Bridgewater is, as long as he’s fully healthy, a better option if something happens to Keenum.