Case Keenum has been there before.
In 2012, Keenum got his first preseason work in the fourth quarter of the Houston Texans’ 26-13 win over the Carolina Panthers. The undrafted free agent from Houston went 2-3 for 33 yards in limited action.
Fast forward to 2023, and Keenum took notice of No. 2 overall pick C.J. Stroud getting his welcoming to the NFL. Stroud led the Texans on their first two drives and went 2-4 for 13 yards and an interception.
Nevertheless Keenum thought the rookie played at an acceptable level in the Texans’ 20-9 victory over the New England Patriots Thursday night.
“I thought he was good tonight, as far as demeanor goes,” Keenum said. “I thought he led well. First live action is tough. I’ve been in his shoes, too, where the first preseason game, you know, you’ve been getting a lot of reps in camp. Then, you come out and get one or two drives, you feel like you’re maybe about to get your rhythm, you get a hit a few times, and you start getting going, and then you get taken out, so it’s tough.”
The Texans replaced Stroud with third-year Davis Mills, who went 9-12 for 99 yards and a touchdown.
Keenum did not see action until the third quarter when he completed nine passes on 14 attempts for 79 yards and a touchdown.
“It felt good,” said Keenum. “We had a couple scoring drives, a couple times we went three-and-out even after the special teams did such a good job of getting us the ball back.”
