Teddy Bridgewater takes over as Vikings quarterback this week, and his teammates issued their support for him on Monday as they filtered through the locker room.

"We're confident in Teddy — he's a good quarterback, and we'll keep improving," said tight end Rhett Ellison.

Christian Ponder now moves to the backup position, with starter Matt Cassel sidelined because of a broken left foot. When Cassel left Sunday's game in New Orleans, Ponder was inactive, so the Vikings had no backup.

"It's scary when you're not dressed," Ponder said. "It's like, 'Who's going to be the emergency quarterback?' I guess put MarQueis [Gray] back there."

"It's tough what Matt is going through, but we're hoping he'll have a full recovery, and that it won't take too long. But I'll be ready to be the No. 2 guy."

Ponder was impressed by Bridgewater.

"He played well. I remember the first preseason game I asked Teddy if he was nervous or not. And, of course, he said no. And I thought, he's just a liar. But the guy doesn't get nervous. The guy has a ton of poise and played extremely well. And I expect that to continue next game."

ESPN's Adam Caplan reported the Vikings were looking into adding McLeod Bethel-Thompson to their practice squad. Bethel-Thompson was on the team last year before being claimed by San Francisco.