BackCLEVELAND, Ohio — Case Keenum is eager to be reunited with his former Vikings quarterbacks coach in Kevin Stefanski and help Baker Mayfield become a better pro.
“Baker reached out as soon as the news broke, which really meant a lot to me,” Keenum said in a release from the Browns Tuesday to officially announce his signing. “I’ve got a lot of respect for him for what he’s done on the field and off the field, too. First and foremost, I know my role coming in. That’s another great positive for me. I’m going to be ready to play. I feel like I’ve played at a high level for the last three years.”
Keenum, who passed his physical and inked his three-year contract worth $18 million including $10 million guaranteed, was brought in to mentor Mayfield and provide veteran leadership in the quarterback room for Mayfield and Garrett Gilbert. He can also step in win games if necessary.
With Stefanski as his QB coach in 2017, Keenum, 32, guided the Vikings to an 11-3 mark and a victory over the Saints in the divisional round before a loss to Philadelphia in the NFC Championship Game. A year later, he started al 16 games for the Broncos, completing 62 percent of his passes for a career-high 3,890 yards, 18 touchdowns and 15 interceptions en route to a 6-10 mark.
“I think Case is somebody that’s seen it all and been through it all in his time as an NFL quarterback,” Stefanski said. “I think the experiences he brings can be great for our team as a whole. I think he knows this system having played in it under coach (Gary) Kubiak when he broke into the league in Houston and obviously I have experience coaching him with the Vikings. I’m really excited about bringing Case the person into this group. He’s the son of a football coach, he’s a grinder, he’s a gym rat, so I think he’ll fit perfectly into the mentality we’re trying to build.”
Keenum, who went 1-7 on a challenged Redskins team last season, is also used to change, having played for the Rams, Vikings, Broncos and Redskins since 2015.
“Case has been a backup in this league, he’s been a starter in this league. He understands as a backup how it’s your job to support the starter and be ready to play in a moment’s notice,” Stefanski said. “Bottom line is we’re adding a really smart, tough football player in that room.”
He’s thrown for 14,368 yards with 75 touchdowns and 47 interceptions with a career passer rating of 85.3. With Sam Bradford suffering a season-ending injury in 2017, the Vikings turned to Keenum, who had a 9-15 record heading in. He also had a 58.4% completion rate, a 78.4 rating and 24 TDs against 20 INTs. With Stefanski as his coach, Keenum completed 67.6% of his passes and earned a 98.3 passer rating. He threw 22 touchdowns and only seven interceptions.
Keenum recorded eight games with a 100+ passer rating to tie for second-most in team history in a season and tied a team record with 10 games without an interception.
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