Kubiak could elevate Keenum, but hopefully not too much, says Lammey
Jan 1, 2019, 4:33 PM | Updated: 4:33 pm
Among the chatter surrounding the Denver Broncos coaching search is the notion that Gary Kubiak, currently a team senior personnel advisor, could make his way back onto the sidelines.
And with Kubiak as his potential new coordinator or coach, Broncos quarterback Case Keenum could see a “bounce” in performance, said “Pritchard and Cecil” co-host Cecil Lammey on Tuesday, but hopefully not too big of one.
“I don’t want the bounce to be too much for Case Keenum because don’t you dare extend this guy thinking that he’s a franchise (quarterback),” Lammey said.
Even if Kubiak returns and Keenum has a career year again and leads the Broncos back to the postseason, Denver still has to draft a quarterback in 2020, said Lammey, if they hadn’t already done so in 2019.
“I’m afraid that if the bounce is too much from Gary Kubiak for Case Keenum, people might be talking themselves into giving Case Keenum more time,” Lammey said. “And I think that’s a mistake.”
Lammey’s co-host, Mike Pritchard, said on Tuesday that he doesn’t believe that Kubiak coaching Keenum would elevate the quarterback’s game. But since there is a relationship, a history there, Pritchard asked, “What if it’s the fit?”
“What if you get in Gary Kubiak and Case Keenum the fit like you had with (Bill) Musgrave and Derek Carr? You pick any combination. Kyle Shanahan and Matt Ryan. (Sean) Payton and (Drew) Brees,” Pritchard said. “What if that fit is Case Keenum and Gary Kubiak?”
Lammey, in response, said the fit would at its best look like Carr and Musgrave, which he called a “pretty good fit” but not a Super Bowl-winning fit.
“I’d still say that wasn’t championship level,” Lammey said. “And the Broncos, by John Elway’s own words, need to be at a championship level.”
Kubiak and Keenum were paired together for most of two seasons with the Houston Texans in 2012 and 2013, though Keenum played in just seven games under Kubiak before he was let go as the team’s head coach.
In those seven games, Keenum threw for 1,592 yards, nine touchdowns, four interceptions, had a completion percentage of 54.34 and a passer rating of 83.7.
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.
