Minnesota Vikings face the possibility of Case Keenum being the QB of the future
The Minnesota Vikings look like they are heading straight towards a playoff berth and it is time to think about the future of Case Keenum.
This is going to a tough stretch for the Minnesota Vikings. The team is currently in the middle of a tough road stretch that now heads into Georgia to take on the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday and into Charlotte the following week to take on the Carolina Panthers. Many things might change, in the world and on the Vikings, between now and the end of that Panthers game, but it is time to start thinking about the possibility of a future with quarterback Case Keenum.
Not that accolades should be the sealing of any sort of promise or future success in professional sports, but Keenum was just named the NFC Player of the Month for November. The month, folks. The NFL regular season is only four months long, so that’s not exactly an easy award to win. Keenum won it and deservedly so.
While we go week to week without head coach Mike Zimmer never actually declaring Keenum the team’s starting quarterback, the Vikings are potentially staring down an even more complicated path for Keenum and his future with the team.
Right now, the conversation is about if Teddy Bridgewater ever gets on to the field this season and takes the starting job away from Keenum. So far, Keenum hasn’t shown signs of giving the gig up which brings up the question: how far do the Vikings need to get to for Keenum to return as the starting quarterback in 2018?
If you’ve been hibernating since Week 1, that statement surely sounds crazy, but it is truly a problem the Vikings will face. There is some point in the playoff success where the Vikings can’t turn away from Keenum for next season and potentially even more, but what is that level? Does Keenum need to lead the Vikings to the NFC Championship game to keep the job in 2018? To the Super Bowl? Does he need to win the Super Bowl to keep the gig?
More from Sporting Sota
- Minnesota Twins bullpen will be their downfall
- Top 5 Minnesota Twins Pitching Prospects
- Kyle Rudolph signing gives stability to Minnesota Vikings offense
- Jake Odorizzi’s emergence fueling Twins starting staff
- Former Minnesota Twins player David Ortiz shot
Once whatever that level of success is achieved, that has to unlock the door for Keenum to be the potential franchise quarterback. It’d be pretty heartless and a tough PR pill to swallow to turn away the quarterback that led your team on a deep playoff run. At least, you’d think so.
Keenum probably isn’t going to be Tom Brady, but there is only one Tom Brady. There are only a handful of quarterbacks that are worth holding onto for a long time and Keenum has been playing like one in 2017. That’s the truth even if you don’t want to admit it.
This tough stretch of games for the Vikings could blow this whole conversation up and quickly. We could come back here in two weeks and laugh at how it was a possibility how Keenum could be the Vikings QB of the future while slipping on our Bridgewater jerseys. Either way, I look forward to that conversation.
Next: 4 things the Vikings should be thankful for!
The Vikings and Keenum will continue to push towards the playoffs on Sunday when they take on the Atlanta Falcons in Georgia. Kickoff is set for noon central.