On Thursday evening, the Chicago Bears signed veteran quarterback Case Keenum. Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, Keenum inked a one-year deal worth up to $3M.
Keenum, 37, has been with the Houston Texans for the last two seasons but spent the 2024 campaign on injured reserve after suffering a foot injury in the preseason. Keenum's last regular-season action came in 2023 when he started two games for Houston, losing both contests and throwing for just one touchdown pass with three interceptions.
Keenum has only made four starts this decade, and he may not necessarily be a lock to make the final roster and will have to compete with Tyson Bagent and Austin Reed for backup duties behind QB1 Caleb Williams.
While Bagent, 24, and Reed, 25, are far younger than Keenum, they're both former undrafted free agents and are inexperienced. Reed's never appeared in a game, Bagent has appeared in nine games and started four while Keenum has appeared in 80 games in his career and started 66.
Beyond Keenum's NFL experience, he also has a track record of helping young quarterbacks. Keenum was the backup to Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud for two years, the No. 2 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
"Keenum now will help mentor Caleb Williams in Chicago like he did for C.J. Stroud in Houston," Schefter said in his report.
Williams, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, showed flashes of brilliance as a rookie but also had growing pains behind one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL. Williams threw for 20 touchdowns with six interceptions but was sacked a league-high 68 times last year, the third-most in NFL history.
Better days may be ahead, though. The Bears are showing they've been putting Williams first this offseason, revamping their offensive line with five new starters and signing a veteran QB like Keenum that Williams can learn from.
It's been a while since Keenum's had sustained success in the NFL with no year better than his 2017 campaign with the Minnesota Vikings, where he had an 11-3 starting record and took the Vikings all the way to the NFC Championship game.
The Bears are surely not expecting Keenum to turn back the clock and perform at the same level he did nearly a decade ago, but they still feel he adds value to an organization.
