Case Keenum’s job with the Cleveland Browns might be in danger

The former Minnesota Vikings quarterback is struggling this summer with the Cleveland Browns.

For the Minnesota Vikings, Case Keenum will always be remembered for the magical season he was able to help the franchise have back in 2017.

Prior to Keenum joining the Vikings and since he’s departed from the Twin Cities though, his career has been anything but magical. Currently, he’s trying to land the role as the No. 2 quarterback for the Cleveland Browns behind Baker Mayfield.

Since the Browns signed him to a three-year, $18 million contract this offseason, most are assuming that Keenum will enter Week 1 as the team’s No. 2 signal-caller. But this might not be how things actually turn out.

Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback not performing well in Cleveland’s training camp

Since Kevin Stefanski came over from Minnesota to be the Browns’ new head coach this year, many believed that the team adding Keenum this offseason was a great decision.

The veteran quarterback and Stefanski worked together with the Vikings in 2017 and it resulted in Keenum having the best season of his NFL career. So naturally, most are assuming that the two of them joining forces in Cleveland will lead to a good outcome once again.

However, Keenum isn’t competing for the Browns’ starting job under center, that role belongs to Mayfield. Instead, he’s looking to open up the 2020 season in the No. 2 spot on Cleveland’s quarterback depth chart. But his performance in the Browns’ training camp so far this summer might prevent that from happening.

Competing for that top backup job this year with Keenum is the guy who held the role for Cleveland last year, Garrett Gilbert. So far, Gilbert appears to be performing much better than the former Minnesota quarterback during the Browns’ training camp this summer.

So is cutting Keenum before Week 1 a realistic possibility for Cleveland? Even with the $8 million in dead money that the Browns would have to deal with if they cut the veteran quarterback this year, it’s still something the team can easily afford to do since they currently have around $40 million in cap space.

Still, parting ways with Keenum before the start of the season doesn’t seem very likely for Cleveland. Especially since there is an extra emphasis being placed on experience this year due to every team’s offseason practice time being significantly reduced thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.

So will Keenum be with the Browns when they open the 2020 season against the Baltimore Ravens in a few weeks? This still seems very likely, but him starting the year as the No. 2 quarterback on Cleveland’s depth chart is something that remains to be seen.