Getty Texans quarterback Case Keenum at Gillette Stadium on August 10, 2023.
The Buffalo Bills backup quarterback competition has been a rollercoaster this preseason.
While Matt Barkley was unexpectedly in the running to be Josh Allen‘s main backup amid Kyle Allen’s ongoing struggles, such hype was put to bed during the Bills’ 27- 15 preseason loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
After replacing Josh Allen, Barkley was intercepted three times in four pass attempts before getting sacked and losing a fumble. He completed 7-of-12 passes for 93 yards, and zero touchdowns before exiting the game with an elbow injury. The Buffalo News‘ Katherine Fitzgerald asked Barkley about his injury outlook after the matchup, “We’ll see,” he said.
Barkley has since missed the entire week of practice leading up to the Bills’ final preseason game against the Chicago Bears and with Kyle Allen’s performance not exactly inspiring confidence, The Athletic‘s Joe Buscaglia urged Buffalo to see if there’s a deal to be made with the Houston Texans in order bring Case Keenum back.
QB Case Keenum and the Texans break the huddle during Wednesday’s practice.
“The Bills’ 2022 backup, Case Keenum, is in a rather unique situation with the Houston Texans. Keenum is signed to a two-year deal that’s fully guaranteed in 2023, though he remains third on the depth chart behind both C.J. Stroud and Davis Mills,” Buscaglia wrote.
“The Texans may want to have a veteran voice for their two young quarterbacks, but should he become available, it likely would take little to acquire him, and Keenum could hit the ground running with the playbook he mastered last year. Keenum’s cap hit would only be $2.5 million this year, which the Bills would have the cap space to add. So it’s all up to (Kyle) Allen, who will likely control his fate Saturday.”
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Sam Darnold was previously floated as an outside option, but he earned the QB2 role over Trey Lance, so he’s no longer available. While Keenum, 35, recently missed a few weeks due to an injury, he was able to return to practice on August 23 with a sleeve on his left leg, per CBS Sports.
Case Keenum Had Great Chemistry in the Bills QB Room
The former undrafted quarterback out of Houston never got a chance to start in Buffalo, but during the 2022 NFL season, Keenum briefly appeared in two games after the Bills already had a sizable lead on their opponents, in Week 2 against the Tennessee Titans and Week 5 against the Steelers.
With just 17 days to go until the season opener, bringing Keenum makes sense, especially since he fit in so well last season. The NFL journeyman, who’s also played for the Denver Broncos, Washington Commanders, Cleveland Browns, Los Angeles Rams, and the Minnesota Vikings, told The Athletic’s Kalyn Kahler in December, ” I love the camaraderie of the QB room, the mesh that happens there.”
Allen, Barkley, and Keenum had dinner together every Friday night and shared an exclusive group text chat.
“This is uncommon,” Keenum said of their friendship. “There are probably more like that (with tension) than not. It’s a hard position to play, it’s the hardest in all of sports. Everybody in the building is dependent on the QB. And the QB is dependent on everybody in the building at the same time. I have not had it like this very often at all, and it’s very nice when it is like this.”
During the Texans preseason win over the New England Patriots on August 10, Keenum completed 9-of-14 passes for 79 yards and a touchdown. Throughout his NFL year career, he’s started 64 games, appeared in 78, and completed 62.3% of his passes for 14,884 yards and 78 touchdowns.
Kyle Allen Has a Huge Opportunity to Step Up in the Final Preseason Game
GettyBill quarterback Kyle Allen at Acrisure Stadium on August 19, 2023.
After Kyle Allen replaced Barkley against the Steelers with 4:37 left in the third quarter, he completed 12-of-15 passes for 112 yards with a late-game touchdown pass and a two-point conversion. While he showed improvement from his performance against the Indianapolis Colts, his snaps came against a third-string defense.
Josh Allen will get the start against the Bears at Soldier Field, but with Barkley out, Kyle Allen will have ample playing time to cement his role as QB2. While Bills head coach Sean McDermott and offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey have stated the competition is still wide open, Kyle Allen is not letting the pressure get to him.
He told The Buffalo News on Thursday, “It’s the last one, it’s the last guaranteed shot I have to go out there and play in a game, so I’m excited about it, just like all the other ones.”