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The Minnesota Panthers won their meeting against the St. Louis Rams, but they lost their quarterback in the most unnecessary way.

Teddy Bridgewater took an elbow to the face on a late hit by Rams cornerback Lamarcus Joyner early in the fourth quarter. Bridgewater, who already was sliding past the first down marker on a second-and-1, seemed to be knocked out momentarily.

Joyner was assessed a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty on the play, and Bridgewater was ruled out for the rest of the game with a concussion. By the looks of it, he likely will be out much longer.

The Vikings went on to win 21-18 in overtime behind 144 yards on 13 of 31 passing by Bridgewater. He also had a rushing touchdown and a two-point conversion to put Minnesota ahead in the fourth quarter.

Joyner, for his part, swore after the game that he didn't mean to make the hit and that Bridgewater is a good friend of his.

Thumbnail photo via Brace Hemmelgarn/USA TODAY Sports Images