Kevin Stefanski Gives Revealing Comments on Browns QB Situation

Getty Browns quarterback Case Keenum.

When it comes to offseason signings, backup quarterback usually doesn’t make the biggest splash. But when the Cleveland Browns inked veteran QB Case Keenum to a three-year deal, it was interesting — to say the least.

Keenum had a connection to first-year Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski, sharing a previous home with the Minnesota Vikings. In 2017, Keenum helped lead the Vikings to the NFC Championship with Stefanski as his QB coach.

That familiarity led to Keenum signing with the Browns with Stefanski as the head man, bringing a heap of experience to the backup role in Cleveland behind Baker Mayfield.

Keenum has 62 starts to his name and some playoff experience to boot.The Browns are his fifth team in five seasons. He played most recently for the Washington Redskins, starting eight games before the reins were handed over to Dwayne Haskins. Keenum went 1-7 in his starts, passing for 1,707 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions.

Keenum started 30 games over his previous two seasons before landing in Washington with the Denver Broncos and Minnesota Vikings.

“That is a valuable position at backup quarterback for a bunch of reasons. I have seen it in my career where sometimes a backup quarterback does not play at all and sometimes he plays a lot,” Stefanski told reporters on Thursday, per cleveland.com. “It is certainly a position that we did not want to take for granted. I just know Case Keenum the person, and I know Case Keenum the player. I think he will make our team better.”


Stefanski: Case Keenum Will Make our Team Better

QB Case Keenum

Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty ImagesCase Keenum

Stefanski has stressed “smart and tough” as attributes he seeks in a football player, and he believes Mayfield — and others — seeing that out of Keenum in his preparation will pay big dividends.

“He said it and I told him, he does not have to be a coach. We have plenty of coaches. He just has to get himself ready to play like every one of our players has to. I think so much of that is just in the preparation,” Stefanski said. “The way Case goes about preparing himself to play, whether he is a backup or the starter, is a great message for our entire team. It is a great lesson for our entire team to see, not just Baker and the rest of the quarterbacks. We just think the guy has the right makeup. I know everybody is sick of me saying smart and tough, but those are a couple of things that Case Keenum has in spades.”


Browns Still Believe in Baker Mayfield

GettyCleveland Browns QB Baker Mayfield.

Mayfield did not have the sophomore season he desired in the NFL. After garnering some MVP hype in the preseason following a record-setting rookie year, Mayfield finished the year with 3,827 yards, 22 touchdowns and 21 interceptions, ranking next-to-last in both passer rating (78.8) and completion percentage (59.4%) despite having both Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry at his disposal.

But despite the down year and the signing of Keenum, there’s no quarterback controversy in Cleveland to speak of. The organization is backing Mayfield 100 percent.

“I just think I believe in Baker Mayfield. He is our starting quarterback,” Stefanski said. “I think he is a young player we have all seen glimpses of being a really good player. Organizationally, we believe in Baker Mayfield. This was part of my job and our job to surround him with people who are going to help make the best version of Baker Mayfield.”

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