Teddy Bridgewater posts pictures of workouts without knee brace

After the injury Teddy Bridgewater suffered last season, even the smallest steps seem significant.

Bridgewater was the Minnesota Vikings’ starting quarterback before suffering a freak and devastating knee injury in practice shortly before the season started. He missed all of last season, and there’s no definitive timetable on if or when he’ll play this season.

So when Bridgewater posted pictures on Instagram of him working out without a knee brace, it seemed like big news.

The last time there was an update on Bridgewater, he was throwing at the Vikings’ OTAs but was doing so with a large knee brace.

Working out without a knee brace doesn’t necessarily mean Bridgewater is ready to play, or even practicing with or without the brace. The Star-Tribune said it still seems likely Bridgewater starts training camp on the physically unable to perform list, and there’s a chance he doesn’t play at all this season. The Vikings haven’t said much about Bridgewater, likely to avoid making any expectations for his recovery.

Bridgewater’s fifth-year option wasn’t picked up by the Vikings, so this is the final year of his contract. Being able to return to game action and show he’s healthy before he hits free agency would be immensely valuable for Bridgewater. It would also help the Vikings with their upcoming decisions on Bridgewater and Sam Bradford, who will also be a free agent next offseason.

But for now the small steps in Bridgewater’s recovery are encouraging, considering what he has gone through.

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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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