Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer suggested he'll take things slow with Bridgewater (knee), who is practicing with his teammates Wednesday for the first time in nearly 14 months, Andrew Krammer of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. "We still don't know where [practice reps are] going to go or where that's going to lead to," Zimmer said. "[Bridgewater is] probably not going to play this week, so we need to put the brakes on things a little bit."
Wednesday marks the beginning of a 21-day window in which Bridgewater can practice without taking up a spot on the 53-man roster. He'll eventually need to be activated or placed on injured reserve, but the Vikings aren't likely to make a decision any earlier than next week. Bridgewater has already been doing individual drills for quite some time, so his next step will be 7-on-7 passing drills, followed by 11-on-11 work somewhere down the line. With Case Keenum performing capably in place of Sam Bradford (knee), the Vikings might be inclined to put off Bridgewater's activation until after their Week 9 bye. Bridgewater's role upon returning presumably will be dependent on some combination of his practice performance, how Keenum fares in games to come and Bradford's health. Keenum will likely pick up his fifth start of the season Sunday against Baltimore.