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i was laid up with an injury the past several days and went back to look our first 8 games, with a particular emphasis on Keenum's play. Here are some things I saw:
1. Early on, it seemed Case either lacked the confidence or the coaches permission, to audible out of bad plays. This has gone away, and you now see Case making adjustments at the line.
2. Case has exceptional pocket presence, and climbs the pocket as well as any QB I have seen. He manages to buy time without stepping into defenders or getiing hit/stripped from the backside.
3. We could use Keenum's mobility better to our advantage. If he ever kept the ball on the read option, we'd have a slew of big plays. No team honors Keenum on that play.
4. Case floats the ball too often when a hard throw would serve better. His arm isn't great, but it is good enough. He clearly prefers the touch pass however, often to the detriment of the play.
5. While he has played well, he has gotten lucky on a number of throws -- the difference would translate from a good rating/QBR to a mediocre one.
6. Too many batted passes -- particularly evident the last few games.
7. Accuracy is only so-so. Slants thrown behind receivers, receivers having to wait for the ball -- Case does not put receivers in a great position for YAC (many times) and receivers have bailed him out with innumerable great plays.
8. He has not shown much with the deep ball. His intermediate throws have been good, but he has missed open receivers deep (more often by not throwing the ball than by a poorly thrown ball).
My conclusion is that Keenum can get us to the playoffs and even a playoff win. He hasn't shown me enough that is special that suggests he can take us all the way unless the defense takes it up another notch and starts scoring points and creating more turnovers. That said, I'm fully aware that Trent Dilfer, Jake Delhomme, Rex Grossman... were Super Bowl QBs.
My own opinion is that a healthy Bradford gives us the best chance to win this year. I doubt that Bridgewater can elevate above what Case is giving us this season. With all the time off and issues TB still needed to work through when he was the starter (deep ball accuracy, holding the ball too long, throwing beind the sticks...) it is too much to think he can step in and lead this team to its full potential this season.
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