For the first time in six months, football returned to television. Even if it was just the Hall of Fame game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Minnesota Vikings, fans were excited.
The actually game didn’t have a ton of excitement as most of the team’s starters were either watching from the sidelines or ended up there after a couple of series. In the end, the Vikings defeated the Steelers 14-3.
It is hard to take away a lot from the Hall of Fame game, but here are the three biggest takeaways from the first preseason game of 2015.
Teddy Bridgewater was sharp
In very limited work in the first quarter, Teddy Bridgewater picked up where he left off last season. The former Louisville Cardinal completed 5 of 6 passes for 44 yards and a touchdown.
Bridgewater was criticized prior to the 2014 NFL Draft because of his workouts and that dropped him all the way to the last pick in the first round. That seems like a long time because he is steadily becoming one of the better young quarterbacks in the league.
With Adrian Peterson returning to the Vikings lineup, the team could contend for a playoff spot this season. It was just a small sample size, but Bridgewater looked sharp in his first preseason game.
Trae Waynes struggled
2015 first round pick Trae Waynes had a night he would rather forget. The rookie was called for three penalties, including an enormous defensive holding call.
A lot of first-year corner struggle in their first game in the NFL. Waynes had problems when he wasn’t in press coverage. Minnesota can afford to wait for Waynes to develop and Sunday night was just the first step in a long process.
Landry Jones was decent but has to play better
With backup quarterback Bruce Gradkowski injured, former Oklahoma Sooner Landry Jones is trying to win his way onto the Steelers roster. He had an OK performance as he finished the game 16-for-32 for 135 yards and had a quarterback rating of 61.3.
With Gradkowski expected to return from his injury soon, the Steelers could just elect to keep him and starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger on its roster. Jones will have to play much better if he wants to lock up a 53-man roster spot.
