Former NFL quarterback Teddy Bridgewater began coaching high school football after leaving the NFL. He was a good coach and even spent money to help his players. He was initially suspended, but a law just approved by the Florida Senate allows coaches to help. Bridgewater resigned to return to the NFL and play for the Buccaneers, but his legacy lives on with the passage of the law.
The Florida Senate passed the “Teddy Bridgewater bill” by a 38-0 vote, according to Local 10 News. It allows high school head coaches to use their own funds to provide financial assistance to their players, provided they report their expenditures. This leaves a lasting legacy for Bridgewater in the Florida high school football scene.
The Florida High School Athletic Association suspended Bridgewater in September for the rest of the 2025-26 school year for providing impermissible benefits to athletes. Bridgewater coached Miami Northwestern High School football in 2024 and was set to lead the team in 2025 before he left the school to sign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Northwestern suspended Bridgewater in July after he revealed in a social media post that he spent $700 a week on Uber rides for his players during the 2024 season. He also acknowledged covering transportation, team-branded clothing, meals, and recovery-related expenses, totaling about $27,000. In that post, Bridgewater asked for donations to the Northwestern football program.
“I’m protective, and I’m a father first before anything,” Bridgewater said last season upon signing with the Buccaneers. “And when I decided to coach, those players became my sons. And I wanted to make sure I protected them as best I could. I think that’s what came about. Miami Northwestern is in a tough neighborhood, and sometimes things can happen when kids are walking home, and that kind of thing. So I was trying to protect them and give them a ride home instead of having to take those dangerous walks.”
Bridgewater’s suspension expires over the summer, and while it is unclear whether he will return to the sideline, the fact that this law seems likely to pass means his legacy will live on in Florida high school football.
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