Dolphins QB Teddy Bridgewater is home: 'That's food for my soul.'

Crouching down on the Miami Northwestern sideline during a recent game, Dolphins quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was wearing royal blue shorts and a gold T-shirt.

Bridgewater, who once starred for the Bulls, had a dry-erase marker in his right hand and was determined to draw up the right play in a critical situation.

"All right, look, look!" said Bridgewater, who is not an official coach. "This is gonna work, all right!"

"What's the formation?" a Northwestern player asked as coaches and players looked on.

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Bridgewater is home. He's never forgotten where he's from. He's never stopped coming back. But now he can really make his presence felt on a consistent basis, at his high school and in the Miami neighborhoods that rightfully claim him as their own.

"Some plays work and some plays don't," Bridgewater said with a smile this week. "There are so many kids in the Bunche Park area, the Liberty City area, who want to be Teddy Bridgewater and look up to Teddy Bridgewater, but they can only see me on the television. So when they can see me in the flesh on the sideline, high school kids can touch me and interact and realize that I’m human just like them.

"That’s food for my soul.”

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Bridgewater, now 29 and in his eighth NFL season, will make his first start for his hometown Dolphins on Sunday, at the New York Jets. It's a shame the game isn't being played at Hard Rock Stadium, which casts a shadow on the fields where he played youth and high school football.

But Miami-Dade County will be watching.

"Teddy gives all the kids in the surrounding areas hope," Chris Perkins, Bridgewater's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Northwestern, said this week. "Teddy did it. That's one of their own out there. He's homegrown. Everyone knows Teddy. He's s like the Mayor of Miami, you know what I mean?"

Even though Bridgewater played college football at Louisville and had stops in the NFL at Minnesota, New Orleans and Denver, he's been intentional about maintaining a connection to Miami. Bridgewater once led Northwestern to a state championship game and two regional playoff appearances.

"Student of the game," Perkins recalled. "Always looking to get better. Always looking to study film. Always wanting to know the ins and outs of scheme. He knew what the defense was trying to do. The work ethic was there."

Now that he's made it, Bridgewater has donated money to youth leagues and donated uniforms and equipment to his high school, and donated money and gifts during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday seasons.

All that is greatly appreciated. But Bridgewater also has made it a point to show his face at his old school, and around town, on a regular basis. Who could forget the viral 2019 video of Bridgewater leaning back, marching at the end of a row of Miami Northwestern dance team members?

Teddy smiles, a lot. And there's nothing he enjoys more than seeing others smile.

"Teddy is a guy that's been through what they've been through," Perkins said of such areas as Liberty City and Miami Gardens, where poverty and violence are too common, and where football is also woven into the fabric of families and community at an early age.

"Those kids have dreams and aspirations of going to the National Football League," Perkins said. "What better guy to look up to as a man? And then you've got a guy that actually comes back. A lot of times you hear about an athlete coming back and throwing money at a situation. Teddy's gonna do that. But he's also gonna be out in the community. You can be able to touch him, throw a pass, play catch, actually talk with him. He's just one of the guys when he comes back."

Teddy Bridgewater's mom, Rose Murphy, kept him grounded

Bridgewater was raised by a single parent, Rose Murphy, who only recently retired after a long career with Miami-Dade County Schools. She once drove a bus and later worked as a field dispatcher.

Murphy was hardworking and humble, and there was nothing more important to her than making sure Teddy and his siblings stayed on the right track.

"The city had swag," former Miami Northwestern head coach Billy Rolle said. "Back then, Miami was the so-called 'Party City.' You had a lot of things going on. Miami never sleeps. So it takes a special person to be from Miami and to be able to overlook a lot of that stuff and stay focused."

Rolle credited Rose Murphy.

"Teddy was very well grounded," Rolle said. "He had a tight-knit family. His mother, older brother, older sister. Teddy, back in the day, I guess you would say he was a homeboy. He was a kid who stayed at home and was disciplined and grounded."

Earlier this year, Bridgewater drew attention when he suggested that some professional athletes would be better off dropping a tough street image portrayed on social media.

"Kids, don't be fooled," Bridgewater wrote on social media. "You can play ball, do the right thing. And they still gonna accept you. Look at me. I'm far from perfect but I chose the ball route but I can still go to the same hood and post up and it's all love."

Bridgewater is not going to apologize for who he is. He is one of the great high school football players in Miami history. But he also got good grades and steered clear of trouble. And he's going to go back to Miami now and stress to those young people that they can do the same. They can choose football and school over drugs or violence.

"Teddy had support," Rolle said. "And so I'm not surprised now to see that he's giving back. What I would say is that Teddy paid attention. There were guys before him that came back and you know, he's done more than even just falling into line with that."

Luther Campbell on Teddy Bridgewater: 'That kid don't get shook.'

Luther Campbell is more than a legendary rap recording artist and former leader of 2 Live Crew. Campbell is a Miami icon who has also been a longtime youth and high school football coach as well as an activist and community leader in his hometown.

Campbell, who once coached at Northwestern and is now head coach at Miami Edison, says of all the great football players to emerge from Miami, Bridgewater is unique.

"He's different than any other player to leave Miami," Campbell said. "That he's back is fitting. It's a fairy-tale story. What makes Teddy special is how he looks out. He gives back on a consistent basis. And it could be at any moment. And he engages community leaders and even politicians. He asks questions. 'How do you do this? How do you do that? He wants to see things get done.' "

Campbell says he does not in any way intend to disrespect Tua Tagovailoa, but that he hopes Bridgewater ends up leading Miami to a Super Bowl.

"I never thought in a million years I would see a kid from inner-city Miami starting at quarterback for the Miami Dolphins," Campbell said.

Campbell told a story that serves as a harsh reminder of where Bridgewater grew up.

"My first time seeing him play football was at Bunche Park and he was playing against Scott Lake," Campbell said of a youth league contest. "And the game ended up in a shoot-out. Literally a shoot-out. And just seeing him, and his poise, you knew, that kid was different. Gunfire stopped the game. And then they started the game back up. He's throwing the ball down the field, no check downs or anything. I knew then, that kid don't get shook.'"

Teddy's mom, Rose, long ago nicknamed her son a "neighborhood hope dealer." She has long believed that her son would make a lasting, positive impact.

This week, Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel reminded Bridgewater that as for on-field play, he doesn't need to do "anything spectacular, besides what you have done that's gotten you here."

Those who know Bridgewater best describe him as an "old soul" and talk about how he's remarkably "even-keeled." They're not overly concerned Bridgewater will try to make heroic plays for Miami.

But everyone, for sure, is pulling for Bridgewater, who couldn't be happier.

"They'll rally around Teddy," Rolle, his high school coach, says of the Dolphins.

"This is a dream come true," Campbell, the coach and legendary rapper, said.

"It's a huge blessing," Bridgewater said, "to be able to suit up in my hometown."

Joe Schad is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Florida Network. You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Dolphins quarterback Teddy Bridgewater gives Miami kids hope