The Chicago Bears signed veteran quarterback Case Keenum to their roster earlier in the 2025 NFL offseason to compete for their backup job and help mentor the younger quarterbacks on their roster for the upcoming season.
Turns out, though, the 37-year-old quarterback had thoughts about hanging it up and retiring from the NFL before he received a call from Bears head coach Ben Johnson.
“To be honest, I was pretty close to being done after last year and being hurt, tough situation,” Keenum said Thursday. “The Bears called, and I come up here and meet with Ben. It was supposed to be a 15-minute meeting and felt like, a couple hours later, ‘This is a special place.'”
After the visit, Keenum said he watched tape on Bears starter Caleb Williams from his 2024 rookie season and walked away impressed with what he saw from the No. 1 pick.
“[I] was like, ‘Holy cow, this guy is really good and he has a chance to be a lot better,'” Keenum said. “It’s been great. It’s been so much fun coming here and playing and being part of that quarterback room and the offense and working with Ben and Deck [offensive coordinator Declan Doyle] and [quarterbacks coach] J.T. [Barrett] and [pass game coordinator] Press [Taylor] and obviously with Caleb, Tyson [Bagent], Austin [Reed] and those guys in that room.”
Case Keenum Impressed With Caleb Williams’ Humility
Keenum is still figuring out his new surroundings and new teammates in Chicago, but he said he has found it “refreshing” thus far working with Williams, whom he said has shown an impressive amount of humility in learning from him as an NFL veteran.
“He’s a sponge,” Keenum said of the Bears starter. “For being an all-world talent, a guy who has obviously, since high school, been the best player on any field anywhere he has ever stepped on, to be humble enough to ask me questions and watch and learn, [it] has been really refreshing to see a guy that young and that talented but still take to me what I have to say, you know? It’s been really fun.”
For Bears fans, that should sound like music to their ears.
Williams had a rocky rookie season with the Bears in 2024, enduring coaching turnover that forced him to work with three offensive coordinators and two head coaches in a single 17-game campaign. He experienced his fair share of rookie growing pains, but the coaching dysfunction put him at a disadvantage without a veteran in the QB room.
Now, while the Bears hope they have the right coaches in place after hiring Johnson and his crew earlier this year, they have a bit of insurance in Keenum, who can impart his 12 seasons of NFL wisdom and help teach Williams the nuances of playing in the league.
Where Will Austin Reed Fit into Bears’ QB Situation?
The Bears have their top three quarterbacks: Williams is the starter, and Keenum will push Bagent for the No. 2 job in training camp with the loser slotting in as the No. 3.
With Keenum in the picture now, though, where does that leave Austin Reed?
Reed spent the 2024 season as the Bears’ No. 3 quarterback, impressing the coaches as an undrafted rookie in training camp and his limited preseason action and earning a spot on their practice squad that he held for the entire season. While he did not see any playing time behind Williams and Bagent, he still received an offer to return in 2025.
Unfortunately for Reed, he could become the odd man out if the Bears decide that three quarterbacks on their active roster gives them less of a reason to stash another on their practice squad in 2025. He may also find it more difficult to get preseason reps if the new coaching staff under Johnson wants its starters to have more playing time.
Reed can still persuade the Bears he is worth further investment, but it will be much more difficult to state his case than in his rookie season with the old coaching staff.
