Getty Case Keenum throws a pass during a Cleveland Browns practice.
While Josh Allen was off competing in a televised golf match, his backup was taking advantage of the Pro Bowler’s rare absence.
The Buffalo Bills quarterback has rarely missed team OTAs since being drafted in 2018, but took some time away from the team this week as he was preparing for and then competing in The Match, a golf competition where he and Patrick Mahomes took on Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers. While he was gone, new Bills backup Case Keenum had the chance to shine.
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Keenum Sharp in Allen’s Absence
As The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia reported, Keenum looked strong in practice this week despite some very trying conditions. The Bills practiced in sometimes heavy wind that left other offensive players struggling, but Keenum didn’t seem affected.
“Keenum [excelled] through the winds that most of the offensive skill players had to fight through during the practice,” Buscaglia reported. “Those same winds gave third-string quarterback Matt Barkley some problems with a few sailing passes, making Keenum’s control impressive. Keenum lost some of that zip when he was pushing the ball down the field, but he remained on target.”
Josh Allen is getting ready for #TheMatch so we got a good look at Case Keenum today #BillsMafia @WKBW
Buscaglia noted that Allen’s absence allowed Keenum to take the full complement of reps, giving him some much-needed time to connect and grow chemistry with his new teammates.
“All throughout the session, Keenum carried good zip and placement accuracy on all of his underneath throws to help his receivers turn up the field,” Buscaglia wrote.
Keenum served as Baker Mayfield’s backup with the Cleveland Browns in each of the last two seasons, seeing only limited time. He is now five years removed from his best season, the 2017 campaign with the Minnesota Vikings where he threw for 3,547 yards with 22 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Allen Looks to Lead New Offense
Like Mitch Trubisky last season, Keenum will likely not see much of the field as long as Allen remains healthy. The Bills enter the 2022 season as the Super Bowl favorite for many pundits, but the team will have some adjusting to do as former offensive coordinator Brian Daboll left to become the New York Giants head coach and the Bills promoted quarterbacks coach Ken Dorsey into the position.
Allen said that Dorsey has shown a good competitive streak, though admitted it could take some work for the offense to get humming again.
“They get fired up in practice and they start yapping a little bit to the defensive guys and they want to call their best stuff. So I’m excited for that,” Allen said, via Pro Football Talk. “And, again, it’s going to be a learning process for [Dorsey] as well. We’re humans, we’re not perfect. We’re not expecting each other to be perfect. But as long as we’re on the same page, which I think we are and we’ll continue to grow with it, I think we’ll be just fine.”
But Allen said the connection he’s already built with Dorsey — as well as the new offensive coordinator’s familiarity with the quarterback position — could make for an easier transition.
Ken Dorsey hasn’t decided whether or not he’ll work from the press box or the field.
But @gabedavis13_ has already made that decision for him
“He’s played quarterback. He understands what it’s like when we’re back there,” Allen said. “So to have that open relationship and a rapport with him, and for him to understand what we’re seeing at the same time and not just expecting us to do something that he hasn’t, or he wouldn’t do, I think is the most important thing and he’s been doing a really good job with it.”
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