NFL Player News

Vikings second-year quarterback Teddy Bridgewater is embracing his role as leader of the offense, the Star Tribune reports.

"I’m a young guy still on the team, but guys are pushing me forward to say something in the huddle, or break the team down, or break the offense down," Bridgewater said. "That just gives you that confidence in yourself, confidence in your leadership and I’ve been extremely comfortable doing that so far."

Coach Mike Zimmer is satsfied with the work Bridgewater has done during the offseason.

"It’s hard to never not be pleased with Teddy because he’s such a hard worker," Zimmer said. "We wanted him to get bigger and stronger; he looks a little bit bigger to me. He’s always worked real hard. The leadership things are starting to come better. I think he’s been doing a good job the two days we’ve been out here against the defense."

Bridgewater made 12 starts in his rookie season and played 13 games in all, racking up 2,919 yards, 14 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while completing 64.4 percent of his passes.

Jets coach Todd Bowles said quarterback Geno Smith will receive all the first-team reps during OTA practices this week, reports the Associated Press.

"If he's playing well, he's the starter," Bowles said. "It's his [job] to lose."

Although Smith will receive a majority of the snaps with the first team during OTAs, Bowles said that would change during training camp.

"Come camp time, there will be competition at the spot," he said.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr did not participate in any passing drills during Tuesday's OTA practice, according to the Bay Area News Group. 

Carr has an injured right ring finger that he's not contemplating surgery for. He was able to take snaps and make pitches during practice. Though he's missing the reps now, Carr is expected to be back by the start of training camp. 

Ballyhooed and controversial Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel has been deemed the lead backup behind Josh McCown, at least for now, the Akron Beacon Journal has reported.

That decision by Mike Pettine was made based on what he has determined from the second phase of the offseason.

Manziel had been considered running neck-and-neck with fellow second-year quarterback Connor Shaw for the backup job. McCown has been declared the starter.

Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson is set to skip OTAs, but his absence is not related to his contract situation. He is instead in Florida to represent the team at the funeral of Tammy Meyerson, who served as the mentor for teammate Jimmy Graham, per NFL.com.

Wilson and the Seahawks have reportedly been millions of dollars apart in contract negotiations, but the two parties have not been contentious publicly about their differences.

Bills general manager Doug Whaley denied reports that the team is moving on from quarterback EJ Manuel. 

The team acquired Matt Cassel and Tyrod Taylor in the offseason.

In an interview with Jim Rome, Whaley said, "I look at it this way, in this business controversy sells,. The more controversy that you can drum up then the more intereste people are going to be."

"For us we’re excited about the future of all three of those guys," Whaley said. "It’s going to be a great competition. And we can keep three quarterbacks. So I dismiss that as just someone trying to get something stirred during this down time and lack of media stories for the NFL." 

Whaley said all three quarterbacks have an equal shot of winning the starting job. 

"I look for him to come in and compete and try to take the job," he said. "Everybody has got an equal footing. It’s a clean slate for all four of our quarterbacks. We’re not tied to anybody. We just want the best man to start."

Vikings young quarterback Teddy Bridgewater apparently doesn't set the bar too low. When asked while accepting the 2014 Pepsi Rookie of the Year award who he would like to emulate, he replied that it would be future Hall of Famer Brett Favre.

"[He's] the guy," Bridgewater said via Pro Football Talk. "Besides the injuries and the hits and everything, he had a pretty successful career. He's a Hall of Famer for sure, multiple Super Bowls, and that's something I look forward to doing. Hopefully, I can win more Super Bowls."

Heady stuff for a guy merely heading into his second season and playing for a team that has never won a Super Bowl. But Bridgewater showed flashes last year, completing 64.4 percent of his passes for 2,919 yards and 14 touchdowns. He was particularly impressive down the stretch, hitting on 73 percent of his passes and averaging 273 yards in his last four games.

Derek Carr's agent, Tim Younger, said the Raiders quarterback will not need surgery on his injured right ring finger, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. 

It was previously reported by ESPN that surgery was a potential option for Carr. 

“I don’t know where this idea came up that he’s going to be having surgery,” Younger said. “The situation, I don’t even want to call it an injury, is very minor, and we’re just being cautious.”

Carr has been held out of team activities to start the offseason. 

The Bills are possibly a quarterback away from being a playoff contender. 

EJ Manuel has been lackluster thus far. Matt Cassel isn't getting any younger. This leaves a potential opportunity for Tyrod Taylor, who signed with Buffalo after spending his first four years as a backup with the Ravens, to be a dark horse to win the job. 

In an interview with Sporting News, Taylor said he's trying to drown out the local noise hyping him up to possibly take the position. 

"I knew coming in here how it was going to be," Taylor said. "My focus is to just prepare for these camps, learn the offense, study and play the best I can.’’

Taylor backed up Joe Flacco during his four years with the Ravens after being selected in the sixth round of the 2011 draft. Flacco proved to be a durable quarterback, which never gave Taylor an opportunity to start. 

Taylor said that Bills coach Rex Ryan told him there would be a quarterback competition during training camp, with the former Virginia Tech star ready for the challenge. 

“He was telling me how excited he was to have a chance to have me there and to have me compete for the job,’’ Taylor said. “Throughout the process, I thought this opportunity was the best for an open competition. That’s what I’d always felt throughout the offseason, and I had confidence in what I could do when I got that chance.’’

Jets offensive coordinator Chan Gailey said there would not be a quarterback competition during training camp and that incumbent QB Geno Smith would "probably" be the team's starter during Week 1 of the regular season, per the Daily News. 

Smith, who threw for 2,525 yards, 13 touchdowns with 13 interceptions a season ago, figured to be locked in a battle with Ryan Fitzpatrick for the starter's role, instead will go into camp with the job his to lose, according to Gailey. 

"You see an awful lot of talent there … he can be pretty good if he can get it all together," Gailey said.