The 2014 rookie NFL quarterback class, a year later, looks like a pretty darn good one.
The Minnesota Vikings and Jacksonville Jaguars struck gold in the first-round, landing Teddy Bridgewater and Blake Bortles, respectively, at opposite ends of the draft's initial stanza, while the Oakland Raiders managed to mine Derek Carr from the second-round.
Each young signal-caller provided their franchise with ample reason for optimism heading into their second NFL season, but which of the trio is set to make the biggest leap in Year Two?
According to Michael Fabiano of NFL.com, Bridgewater looks like the safest bet to take the potential he showed in Year One and turn it into a more complete package in 2015.
"I'm a big fan of Teddy Bridgewater in his sophomore season," Fabiano writes. "He showed flashes of potential as a rookie, and the (expected) return of Adrian Peterson will only add to his sleeper appeal. Bridgewater will also have a deep threat in newly-acquired Mike Wallace in addition to incumbent receivers like Charles Johnson and Kyle Rudolph. I also like that he'll continue to learn from offensive coordinator Norv Turner, who has coached some great quarterbacks in his career."
The importance of the triumphant return of Peterson cannot possibly be overstated for the Vikings and Bridgewater's development.
Without the future Hall of Fame ballcarrier in the Vikings fold, Minnesota had little in the way of an actual, effective run game to speak of last season.
Matt Asiata and Jerick McKinnon did their best to provide a spark to the offense beyond the nimble Bridgewater, but really, there was no possible way for them to do anything other than fall well short of the impact Peterson would have made in their place.
Turner is notorious for building offenses predicated on a strong running game and a consistent, advantageous, if not necessarily dynamic, passing game. Combined with the addition of Wallace, the continued development from Johnson and Cordarelle Patterson and the offensive stylings of Turner, it looks like Bridgewater will improve his production simply by not having to carry as much of the load by himself in Year Two.
Then again, Bridgewater, who managed 259 completions for 2,919 yards, 14 touchdowns and a 85.2 quarterback rating, performed so admirably and showed so much promise in such a poor situation last year that it may be his own development that could have him leaving Carr and Bortles in his wake next season.
"Teddy Two Gloves" was one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the NFL over the final month of the 2014 season. From Week 14 on he averaged 273 passing yards per game while completing 71.8 percent of his passes and throwing six touchdowns to five interceptions. He also had four multi-touchdown games over the final six weeks. Don't let Bridgewater's stats from 2014 fool you. He should make a big leap in Year 2," writes NFL.com's Alex Gelhar.
While Carr was handed a new top receiving threat in Amari Cooper - along with the underrated pick up of center Rodney Hudson - this offseason and the Jaguars brought in tight end Julius Thomas in free agency and running back T.J. Yeldon in the draft - and can probably expect a fair amount of improvement from Marqise Lee, Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns - it looks increasingly like Bridgewater may be set to make the biggest jump of the trio from Year One to Year Two.
