The Texans are going with experience under center against the Tennessee Titans and are expected to start veteran quarterback Case Keenum instead of third-year pro Davis Mills with rookie C.J. Stroud sidelined with a concussion, according to league sources.
The Texans are hoping that Keenum can provide a spark for the passing game coming off a 30-6 loss to the New York Jets where they were limited to 54 net passing yards and 135 yards of total offense and help them win a pivotal game in the ultra-crowded AFC playoff race.
Keenum took the majority of the first-team snaps during practices this week, per sources, with Mills also getting some work behind him with the first-team offense. Stroud, an NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year frontrunner and Pro Bowl candidate who’s listed as doubtful on the injury report, remains under the NFL concussion protocol and has not been medically cleared and won’t play Sunday, per sources.
The Texans trail the 8-5 Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC South. Five teams, including the Texans, are in a 7-6 logjam. The Texans currently rank eighth in the playoff standings and wouldn’t quality for the postseason if the season was over today.
Keenum, 35, is a former University of Houston standout and has started for the Texans, Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota Vikings, Denver Broncos and Cleveland Browns. He has been listed as the third quarterback on the depth chart all year behind Mills, the usual backup, and Stroud who got hurt last week on a late hit against the New York Jets. Keenum hasn’t played in any games this season.
Keenum has a 29-35 all-time record as a starter, passing for 14,884 career yards, 78 touchdowns and 48 interceptions.
He hasn’t played in a game this season since signing a two-year, $6.25 million contract this offseason that includes $4 million guaranteed with a $750,000 signing bonus.
Keenum, a Brownwood native, played in two games as a backup last season to Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, passing for eight yards on 2 of 7 passing with no touchdowns or interceptions.
He won both of his starts in 2021 for the Cleveland Browns, passing for 462 yards, three touchdowns and one interception as he completed 65.3 percent of his throws.
With the Commanders in 2019, Keenum started eight games and went 1-7 as he passed for 1,707 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions.
With the Broncos in 2018, Keenum passed for 3,890 yards, 18 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
As the man who engineered the ‘Minnesota Miracle’ with the Vikings in a 2017 playoff game, he passed for 3,547 yards with a career-high 22 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
With the Texans as a rookie in 2013, he passed for 1,760 yards, nine touchdowns and six interceptions, going, winless in eight starts. He went 2-0 as a starter in 2014 when Ryan Fitzpatrick broke his leg, passing for 435 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Keenum became the all-time NCAA leader for passing yards, touchdowns and completions for the Coogs.
He was traded to the Bills last year from the Browns for a seventh-round draft pick before joining the Texans as a free agent this offseason.
Aaron Wilson is a contributor to Sports Talk 790
Photo: Bob Levey / Getty Images Sport / Getty Images