John Elway is looking to free agency for his fix at quarterback following a season in which all three of his drafted QBs fell flat in Denver.
After sitting out the playoffs in each of the last two years following their Super Bowl 50 triumph Sam Darnold Jersey Youth , the Broncos have apparently found their next signal-caller. Case Keenum plans to sign with Denver when free agency opens Wednesday, ESPN reported early Tuesday.
That would leave the Vikings, Cardinals and Jets vying to land ex-Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins, who is expected to sign a record-breaking contract this week.
The 30-year-old Keenum is considered the second-best QB available on the open market. He guided Minnesota to the NFC championship game after replacing an injured Sam Bradford last season.
Keenum went 11-3 with 3,547 yards passing, 22 touchdowns and seven interceptions and threw that last-second heave to Stefon Diggs to stun the New Orleans Saints 29-24 in the playoffs.
The Vikings, who were subsequently blown out at Philadelphia in the conference championship, decided to let all three of their QBs – Keenum, Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater – test free agency.
With a sparkling new stadium, stacked roster and head coaching stability, the Vikings jumped to the head of the line of potential suitors for Cousins.
The Broncos, who own the fifth pick in next month’s NFL draft, also considered Cousins following a 5-11 season in which Trevor Siemian, Brock Osweiler and Paxton Lynch all struggled behind a porous offensive line and questionable play-calling before Mike McCoy was replaced by Bill Musgrave as offensive coordinator.
All three quarterbacks were draft picks by Elway, the Hall of Fame quarterback who has only had success at quarterback in free agency.
Six years ago, Elway landed Peyton Manning, the biggest free agent prize in NFL history Landon Collins Giants Jersey , following his release by the Colts and a series of neck fusion surgeries.
Manning had a spectacular closing chapter in Denver, leading the Broncos to the playoffs in all four of his seasons, reaching two Super Bowls and winning one.
Manning retired a month after Denver’s 24-10 win over Carolina in Super Bowl 50, and Elway brought in veteran Mark Sanchez, then moved up to grab Lynch in the first round of the draft.
But it was Siemian, a seventh-rounder from Northwestern, who emerged as Manning’s surprise successor in 2016.
Gary Kubiak stepped down as head coach over health concerns following a 9-7 season that ended the Broncos’ five-year playoff run.
Siemian again handily beat out Lynch last summer, but the Broncos would cycle through their trio of homegrown QBs during a 5-11 season that nearly cost rookie head coach Vance Joseph his job.
Keenum is a player the Broncos know well because Kubiak, now the Broncos’ senior personnel adviser, coached him for two seasons while he was head coach of the Houston Texans.
Keenum would have veterans Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders as his targets in Denver after Elway chose not to release either of the expensive wide receivers.
At the NFL scouting combine this month, Elway said, ”we’ll continue to look at all of the options out there when it comes to quarterback.”
That included choosing among the draft prospects that include Josh Allen, Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield and others.
Despite his swings and misses at QB before, Elway said, ”Believe me Ezekiel Elliott Jersey , I’m not done swinging and missing. Misses don’t bother me. We just have to figure out a way to get it right. That is what we are working on.”
Siemian, Lynch and Chad Kelly, a seventh-rounder last year who sat out his rookie season with injuries, remain on the roster.
Elway insists the Broncos can get right back into the playoff picture with the right quarterback and tweaks to other areas of the roster.
”I still think we’re not too far away,” Elway said at the combine. ”Obviously, we have to get better at that (quarterback) position. We didn’t play well there last year. That doesn’t all go on the players. There were some things that we should have done differently that we didn’t do. I feel like we can get right back in the thick of the things rather quickly.”
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For the first time in almost 17 years, the Toronto Raptors are off to a winning start in a playoff series.
Not that they’re overly excited about it.
Serge Ibaka had 23 points and 12 rebounds, Delon Wright scored 11 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter, and the Raptors snapped a 10-game losing streak in playoff openers by beating the Washington Wizards 114-106 on Saturday.
”It’s out of the way now,” DeMar DeRozan said of the streak. ”Worry about Game 2.”
DeRozan scored 17 points, C.J. Miles and OG Anunoby each had 12 and Kyle Lowry had 11 points and nine assists for the Raptors, whose only previous victory in the opening game of a playoff series came in the second round at Philadelphia on May 6, 2001.
Toronto entered having lost an NBA-worst 10 consecutive Game 1s since, including six at home.
”I think the fans are more relieved than we are,” Wright said.
Raptors coach Dwane Casey said his team, the top seed in the Eastern Conference, is focused on more than Game 1.
”We’re not satisfied Baker Mayfield Browns Jersey ,” Casey said. ”We’re in this for the long run.”
Toronto put its streak in the past by hitting 16 of 30 3-point attempts, a team record for a postseason game.
”We let a few of their guys that just can flat-out shoot, shoot a lot of 3s,” Wizards coach Scott Brooks said.
Miles made four from long range, while Ibaka and Wright each hit three.
”I always thought Serge was going to be the X-factor with his shooting when they double-team Kyle and DeMar,” Casey said. ”His 3-point shooting is huge.”
Brooks called Ibaka ”one of the best, if not the best, big man shooter in the league.”
The Raptors host Game 2 on Tuesday.
John Wall had 23 points and 15 assists for the Wizards, while Markieff Morris had 22 points and 11 rebounds.
Bradley Beal scored 19 points for Washington, while Mike Scott had 14 and Marcin Gortat 12.
The Wizards swept Toronto in the first round in 2015 but find themselves in a quick hole this time around.
”We’ve been here before,” Beal said. ”We didn’t come here with the mindset that we were going to sweep them. We had opportunities, several opportunities, to win tonight and close it out but we didn’t. Brush it off and move forword.”
Washington led 91-88 when Scott was called for a flagrant foul after using his elbow to knock Lowry down early in the fourth. Lowry made both free throws and, on the ensuing possession, Wright gave Toronto the lead with a layup. After a missed shot by Morris, Miles hit a 3 to cap a 7-0 run that gave the Raptors a 95-91 lead with 9:26 left.
”That sequence was big for us just to get the lead back and kind of start to get a little bit of momentum, a little bit more push Jordan Howard Bears Jersey ,” Lowry said.
Kelly Oubre Jr. hit a 3 and Gortat made a dunk to put Washington back in front, but Wright and Miles each hit 3-pointers as Toronto used an 8-0 run to take a 103-96 lead with 6:27 left, and never trailed again.
Anunoby made his first two 3-pointers and led Toronto with eight points in the first as the Raptors led 28-23 after one.
”He was great,” Casey said of Anunoby. ”He was cool as a cucumber. When he made his first 3, I thought that relaxed him a little bit.”
Wall scored nine points in the first, but Gortat and replacement Ian Mahinmi each had two fouls before the first quarter was half over. Gortat picked up his first when he fouled Jonas Valanciunas on the opening tip.
”It was definitely a challenge,” Brooks said of the early foul trouble. ”You don’t think your big will get a foul on the jump ball. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that to start the game, especially in the playoffs.”
The Wizards led 59-55 at halftime. Toronto reclaimed the lead with an 11-2 spurt to start the third.
”They jumped on us,” Brooks said. ”For some reason we didn’t lock in those first few minutes.”
DeRozan scored 12 points in the quarter as the Raptors took a slim 86-85 lead into the fourth.
TIP-INS
Wizards: Wall had six assists in the second quarter and 10 in the first half. … Otto Porter started despite sitting out Wednesday’s season finale because of a strained right calf. He scored nine points. … Scott was available after going through the NBA concussion protocol. … Washington is 11-22 all-time in playoff openers on the road.
Raptors: Lowry played despite flu-like symptoms. … Toronto had 11 turnovers in the first half, leading to 12 points for the Wizards. They finished with 17. … G Fred VanVleet (bruised right shoulder) was not available. VanVleet was injured in Wednesday’s regular season finale.
DAMP DELAY
The game was about five minutes late tipping off because of an apparent issue with moisture on the court along the baseline adjacent to Washington’s bench. Arena staffers continued drying the area periodically throughout the game.
HUMBOLDT STRONG
Rapper Drake, the Raptors’ global ambassador, attended the game wearing a Humboldt Broncos hockey jersey. Sixteen people have died following an April 6 crash involving a semi-trailer and the Saskatchewan junior hockey team’s bus.
UP NEXT
Game 2 is Tuesday night in Toronto.
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