The Cincinnati Bengals could potentially play against yet another backup quarterback when they take on the Miami Dolphins on Thursday: Teddy Bridgewater.
With Tua Tagovailoa's status for Week 4 still up in the air, Bridgewater may fill in to take starting snaps in an upgraded Miami offense.
It goes without saying that this would be a huge advantage to the Bengals, who have already faced two backup quarterbacks in the weeks prior: Joe Flacco of the New York Jets and Cooper Rush of the Dallas Cowboys.
Rush and the Cowboys managed to thwart Cincinnati in Week 2, but with Burrow regaining his form and the offense starting to gel a bit, the Bengals look to be in much better shape heading into Week 4.
Compared to the elite quarterbacks in the league, Tua Tagovailoa admittedly ranks out of the top-10, yet the Dolphins are without a doubt a more dangerous team with him at the helm.
Bengals need to take advantage if Bridgewater starts for Dolphins
Bridgewater briefly stepped in at quarterback in Week 3 when Tagovailoa had to exit the game for a possible concussion, and this is how it went:
If you want evidence of the impact that Tua has on this offense, watch the one drive that Teddy Bridgewater put together pic.twitter.com/ZrnxzhHddU
— King of Phinland🐬👑 (@KingOfPhinland) September 27, 2022
Bridgewater has served as a backup to several teams including the Denver Broncos and New Orleans Saints, and throughout his career, he's never amounted to anything more than just an occasionally reliable insurance piece.
Jaylen Waddle is also questionable for Thursday's game due to a groin issue, which means the Bengals could face a Dolphins side without two of their most effective playmakers.
Game, set, match? Not necessarily. The Bengals' defense still needs to keep tight coverage on Eli Apple's favorite trash-talking target, Tyreek Hill, not to mention Cincy's typically high-scoring offense isn't running as well as it used to.
In the Dolphins' victory against the Bills in Week 3, Miami chose to beef up its secondary and prioritize pass coverage against Buffalo's top wideouts (Stefon Diggs, Gabe Davis), in return giving the Bills more leeway in the run game.
If the Dolphins adopt a similar strategy this week, Joe Mixon could play a very crucial part in leading Cincy to victory.
And if Teddy Bridgewater does end up starting in Week 4, Trey Hendrickson will also be a huge game-changer. Take him down, Trey.