Teddy Bridgewater, Blake Bortles Usher in Promising Eras for Vikings and Jaguars

The Minnesota Vikings and the Jacksonville Jaguars are both in desperate need of some life to be breathed into the franchise, and each got exactly that in the form of a rookie quarterback in Week 3. 

Although each team lost Sunday, falling to 1-2 and 0-3, respectively, first-round draft picks Teddy Bridgewater and Blake Bortles were each forced into action and showed play indicative of a promising future. 

Once a potential No. 1 overall pick who dropped to the last selection of the first round in May, Bridgewater was called upon when starter Matt Cassel left with a foot injury. As he told reporters after the game, via the Star Tribune's Master Tesfatsion, nerves weren't a factor in his debut:

And it seemed like it. 

On his first drive, a calm Bridgewater completed his first three throws and promptly moved the Vikes down the field for their first three points early in the second quarter. He finished 12-of-20 for 150 yards, zero touchdowns, zero interceptions and six rushes for 27 yards. 

It's a mostly nondescript final line, but it doesn't tell the entire story. Facing a talented New Orleans Saints defense on the road, he didn't force anything, used his elusiveness to open up plays, showed good touch on his throws and had the Vikings within four in the fourth quarter before eventually falling, 20-9. 

NFL.com's Albert Breer put it simply:

Bridgewater will take his rookie bumps, but in just three quarters of action, he has already shown an ability to move the ball more efficiently than Cassel. His 7.5 yards per attempt from Sunday is a number Cassel hasn't hit since Dec. 15 of last year. 

And with news that Cassel has fractured bones in his foot, via Breer, it's Teddy Touchdown Time in Minnesota for the foreseeable future. 

About 550 miles east of New Orleans, Bortles was entering the game not long after Bridgewater, although it was for a much different reason. Chad Henne was painfully ineffective (4-of-7, 33 yards, three sacks) and had helped Jacksonville fall into a 30-0 hole against the Indianapolis Colts at halftime, forcing Gus Bradley to turn to the rookie. 

It was all garbage time, but again, Bortles displayed far superior play than the incumbent, completing 14 of 24 throws for 223 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. And as Yahoo! Sports' Scott Pianowski noted, he did a much better job eluding pressure than Henne, who took a ridiculous 13 sacks over the past six quarters:

Time and time again, we heard in the preseason how the Jags would "redshirt" Bortles in 2014. But it took a whopping three weeks for a change of plans. Bortles, who has impressive athletic ability and the arm to make any throw, was thoroughly impressive in the preseason. Henne is clearly not the future of this team. 

In Week 4, the future will officially be the present for both Minnesota and Jacksonville. Bridgewater will start against Atlanta, while Bortles starts at San Diego. 

It may not translate to wins in 2014, but the pair of rookies will at least give each suffering fanbase reason for optimism over the next 13 games.