Report: Broncos Shopping Case Keenum After Flacco Trade
By Zack Kelberman
DENVER (247 SPORTS) - Case Keenum is without a job — and he could soon be without an NFL home, too.
The Denver Broncos blockbuster trade for Joe Flacco on Wednesday leaves Keenum between a rock and a hard place. He's no longer the team's starting quarterback and Flacco's acquisition puts into doubt his roster status for 2019.
Before they do the inevitable — release him — they'll attempt to recoup the fourth-round capital they lost to Baltimore. Per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the Broncos currently are shopping Keenum around the league, hoping to find a taker for his end-of-contract-year, which includes $7 million guaranteed and a $21 million salary cap number.
Denver general manager John Elway has already conferred with Keenum to deliver the news. Elway will retain him as an expensive backup or cut his losses after handing the 31-year-old a $36 million deal last offseason.
Various NFL teams (Bengals, Dolphins, Giants, Jaguars, Redskins, Vikings) figure to inquire about Keenum, though it's highly unlikely they absorb his burdening salary. The Broncos would clear $18 million by dealing him, leaving behind $3 million in dead money.
Conversely, they'd save $11 million by designating Keenum a pre-June 1 release, with a whopping $10 million in dead cap charges.
Keenum showed encouraging signs that perhaps his best football is yet to come but ultimately provided an awful return on the team's investment in 2018. He finished his first Broncos campaign with 3,890 passing yards, 18 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, handicapped by his own physical limitations, shoddy coaching, and a rash of injuries.
The Broncos dumped their coaching staff after the season, replacing HC Vance Joseph and offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave with Vic Fangio and Rich Scangarello, respectively. The latter earned the role for his noted QB development, giving Keenum what he thought was a clean slate.
But then came Elway's mid-January interview with Peter King, where he now-infamously referred to Keenum as a "short-term fix" under center — a hint that his clock was ticking.
"[W]e've got to — Case [Keenum] is probably a short-term fix — find the long-term guy for us," he said, via Pro Football Talk. "When we do find that guy, we've got to have the continuity on the offensive side to where we can train him and develop him and get him there. This is our fourth offense in probably three or four years. Quarterbacks need to be developed. You don't find one ready-made. We got to have a solid system in place for when we do go after whatever guy it may be, a young guy or a trade or whatnot."
Nevertheless, Keenum maintained a positive attitude despite the swirling QB rumors gripping Dove Valley. Last week, he shrugged off hearsay linking the Broncos to Missouri's Drew Lock, a presumptive top-ten choice in April's draft.
"When's the draft?" Keenum jokingly asked last week, via DenverBroncos.com. "Sorry, I haven't looked at any draft boards yet. I know how much that changes and how that goes. My job is to get healthy and to get ready for this year. I'm not going to be paying too much attention to that right now especially."
You can bet he's paying attention now.
