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NFL

Bridgewater: 'Just out there living my dream'

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. – Teddy Bridgewater is determined to leave any trepidation on the sideline whenever his first in-game snap comes after more than a year away from the game.

The Vikings quarterback said he never doubted that he would one day be able to resume his career where he left off after dislocating his left knee and tearing multiple ligaments at the end of the 2016 preseason. After 14 months of intense physical rehabilitation and training for his return, the mental hurdles of being back in a game where he’s susceptible to injury aren’t an issue for the quarterback.

“I honestly think I’m over them,” Bridgewater said. “I think I’m a mentally strong guy and the guys in this locker room helped reassure that.”

Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater won’t start on Sunday, but he said he has no concerns whenever he next sees action. He’s been sidelined since injuring his left knee during the 2016 preseason. Photo by Nick Wosika/Icon Sportswire

As part of his journey forward, Bridgewater has taken the time to reflect upon the struggles he faced in his recovery. He does so by pointing to times where he needed assistance to do everyday tasks like put his pants on or walk by himself. While some deeper self-actualization will eventually come once he’s progressed further, the quarterback hasn’t let seeing the spot on the field where he went down in practice take away from his focus.

“Once I get out there, in between those lines, I have no regrets, no doubt, I’m just out there living my dream, continuing to live my dream,” he said. “I pay no attention to the spot. I pay no attention to the play-action I did that day. Just give it my all. If it’s part of God’s plan, I’m all for it.”

This Sunday, Bridgewater will serve as a backup to Case Keenum against Washington. The last time Bridgewater entered a game as a non-starter came during his rookie season in 2014. Though the discussion of Bridgewater regaining his role as the starter will ramp up in coming weeks, the quarterback says he’s not focused on the switch right now.

“Case is starting this week,” he said. “The guys are going to be behind him. I’m going to be behind him, going to continue to be those second pair of eyes for him on the sideline and continue to motivate him and cheer guys on.”

But if Bridgewater does have to step in for Keenum at FedEx Field, the quarterback is confident in his ability to perform and evade a pass rush.

“I have a ton of confidence,” he said. “Throughout this entire process we did drills and simulated different movements that would prepare me for game-like situations. It’s not the actual game but had some great work throughout this entire process.”

When Bridgewater wasn’t practicing, utilizing virtual reality helped him keep up with what Keenum, Sam Bradford and Kyle Sloter were doing in practice.

“Stealing reps” he called it, another way the quarterback was able to grasp the concepts of Pat Shurmur’s offense without having played a game in it.

Bridgewater was a constant presence in the locker room and position meetings even when he was on injured reserve and the PUP list . Electing to do his rehabilitation in Minnesota was an easy choice because it allowed him to be around his teammates and maintain his leadership role in the locker room when he wasn’t able to on the practice field and in games.

“It’s always hard when the guys are going to work and you have to go in the opposite direction,” he said. “It’s like when all the kids are going to P.E. and you have to go to detention or something like that.

“It’s hard being a competitor and knowing how much these guys mean to me that I couldn’t be out there with those guys. I kind of didn’t like the fact that I couldn’t be out there but I couldn’t do anything about it but put my head down and continue to work so eventually that day would come that I was out there with those guys.”

Soccer

FIFA urged to engage with Qatar's government about impact of kafala system

Dean Mouhtaropoulos / Getty Images Sport / Getty

As the corruption scandal engulfing FIFA hits the courtrooms, the 2022 World Cup is under the microscope.

On Thursday, FIFA’s Human Rights Advisory Board published its first report. In it, the advisory board recommends that FIFA press Qatar’s government about the impact of the kafala system on migrant workers involved in construction for the 2022 World Cup.

The kafala system is regarded as modern slavery, requiring migrant workers to obtain the consent of their employers to terminate their employment contracts. The report recommends that “FIFA actively explore ways to use its leverage to engage with the host government about the impact of the kafala system on migrant workers involved in World Cup-related construction.”

According to the Guardian’s David Conn, the number of workers in Qatar who are brought in from poorer countries – India, Nepal, Bangladesh – and who are employed to build eight stadiums for the 2022 World Cup, is expected to rise from 12,000 to 36,000 over the next year. The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, a quasi-governmental committee organising the tournament, told Human Rights Watch that they expect the number of workers on their projects to peak at around 35,000 by late 2018 or early 2019.

In September, Human Rights Watch said that thousands of migrant workers on construction sites in Qatar, including those building stadiums for the 2022 World Cup, are being subjected to “potentially life-threatening heat and humidity.” The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy classified eight deaths between October 2015 and July 2017 as “non-work-related,” listing seven of them as the result of “cardiac arrest” and “acute respiratory failure.” But, as Human Rights Watch pointed out, the terms “obscure the underlying cause of deaths and make it impossible to determine whether they may be related to working conditions, such as heat stress.”

The advisory board was created in early 2017 to provide “independent advice” on FIFA’s human-rights responsibilities. The expert group is comprised of eight representatives and includes members from the UN System, civil society, trade unions, and FIFA sponsors.

Fatma Samoura, FIFA’s general secretary, said: “This report shows that FIFA is making important progress in integrating respect for human rights throughout its wide range of activities. We are taking a pioneering role in that regard and feel privileged to be able to count on the outstanding support of the advisory board members. They validate the important progress that is taking place and challenge us where more is still to be done.”

Nicholas McGeehan, a researcher for Human Rights Watch who sounded the alarm about dangerous conditions in Qatar and the unexplained death of thousands of workers, sees the report as inadequate. He declared that it was “shocking” that explicit and urgent recommendations weren’t made to prevent workers from the dangerous conditions and investigate the unexplained deaths.

The International Trade Union Confederation welcomed a breakthrough to end the kafala system in October, announcing that new guidance and commitments made by Qatar’s government will dismantle the system.