Young Award winners

— The Vikings-Broncos exhibition Saturday night features more intrigue than the typical preseason opener.
Denver QB Case Keenum gets to face his former teammates whom he helped reach the NFC championship before management dumped him in favor of Kirk Cousins Jim Brown Jersey , the jewel of this winter’s free agent class.
Keenum said Wednesday he’s eager to face the Vikings.
“Definitely. I mean, I got a firsthand view of how good a defense it is, so I know we’ve got our work cut out for us. It’s going to be a great test. I’m excited to go compete against a really, really talented defense,” Keenum said.
Keenum insisted he holds no grudges , either.
“No, man. I love all those guys,” he said. “This Saturday it’s going to be a competition and we’re going to get after it. I know those guys are going to be jacked to get back on the field just like I’m jacked to get back on the field. But, no. No bad feelings.”
Keenum went 12-4 for the Vikings last season after injuries to Sam Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater, but Minnesota moved on in the offseason, winning the Cousins sweepstakes with, among other things Mike Ditka Jersey , a strong roster, a sparkling new stadium and a fully guaranteed contract for $84 million over three years.
Keenum signed a two-year, $36 million deal in Denver.
Asked what he admires about Keenum’s game after watching film of last season’s surge, Cousins said, “Any time you win 13 games and a playoff game you’re doing an outstanding job as a quarterback, but I’ve watched Case going back to his days in Houston running Coach (Gary) Kubiak’s offense, watching him in L.A. He won that job in training camp, and here, he’s just a winner.”
Cousins said Keenum does all the little things right: “There’s a lot of positives to his game.”
It’s just that the Vikings found more to like in Cousins’ repertoire.
“Case was a winner,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said. “He won a lot of games and moved well in the pocket. He’s a great teammate and made some outstanding plays for us.
“With Kirk, he’s been as advertised. He throws the deep ball well, very accurate Kerry Hyder Jersey , and takes charge of the offense.”
Cousins and Keenum figure to play a series or two Saturday night, then give way to their backups, and that’s where the real intrigue comes in.
Trevor Siemian won the Broncos’ starting job each of the last two summers but was traded to Minnesota after the Broncos signed Keenum.
Zimmer said Siemian’s 24 starts over the last two years and high IQ made him a perfect fit as Cousins’ backup.
Siemian said Keenum’s short stint in Minnesota is indicative of how important it is to have a capable backup ready to step in and run the offense should the starter get hurt.
“Case here, Nick Foles in Philly,” Siemian said. “Yeah, I think you’re one play away. My job is to prepare as if I’m starting and knock on wood, if I’m called upon, I’ll be ready to go.”
Siemian, however, might not even get as much work this weekend as another former Broncos QB, Kyle Sloter, who signed with the Vikings a year ago after a surprisingly strong camp in Denver.
The Broncos are still holding out hope that Paxton Lynch is a late-bloomer and not a first-round bust.
Broncos coach Vance Joseph declared Lynch and Chad Kelly would battle it out for the backup job this summer Dede Westbrook Jersey , yet Lynch has worked exclusively with the second-teamers while Kelly has worked with the third-stringers so far.
Kelly, however, has consistently outshined Lynch and was clearly the superior quarterback in a recent scrimmage.
Lynch figures to get the bulk of the snaps Saturday night for Denver, and his performance could go a long way in determining if the Broncos need to consider signing a veteran backup for Keenum.
Notes: DE Clinton McDonald was getting his troublesome shoulder checked out again Wednesday. … Joseph said TE Jeff Heuerman, who has missed all but one day of camp with a sore left knee, doesn’t necessarily have to rush back to make the roster. “It’s early,” Joseph said. “I wouldn’t say that right now. That’s extreme.”
Here’s a look at what’s happening around the majors today:
SWING OR MISS?
Many hitters got off to a smashing start in July as Cleveland socked 11 doubles, Baltimore homered four times and the Cubs combined with Minnesota for 21 runs at Wrigley Field on Sunday. Now, we’ll see if the trend continues as the weather heats up and the balls fly.
June marked the second time in three months that strikeouts exceeded hits in the major leagues, a pattern that had never occurred until this year. About halfway through the season, there had been 21,090 strikeouts and 20 Eric Dickerson Jersey ,671 hits.
SLAMMIN’
The Reds try to keep socking grand slams when the White Sox come to Great American Ball Park. Cincinnati leads the majors with nine slams and has already tied the single-season franchise record set in 2002.
Jose Peraza hit one Sunday, and pitchers Mike Lorenzen and Anthony DeSclafani recently connected. Eight different Reds have hit grand slams – Adam Duvall is the only player with two.
James Shields, who twice has led the league in homers allowed, starts for Chicago.
MOTOWN MEMORIES
Washington ace Max Scherzer (10-4, 2.04 ERA) will face ex-Detroit teammate Rick Porcello (9-3, 3.60 ERA) in a matchup of former Cy Young Award winners when the Boston Red Sox visit Nationals Park.
HE’S BACK
Shortstop Jorge Polanco is set to rejoin the Twins after serving an 80-game drug suspension. He went 8 for 19 in six rehab games at Triple-A and Class A, and will report to the big league club for the series opener at Milwaukee. The 24-year-old Polanco was a key contributor last season when the Twins earned an AL wild-card spot.
SEATTLE SLOW
The Mariners plan to monitor Felix Hernandez and his back stiffness over the next few days. Hernandez pitched five innings Saturday night and earned the victory over Kansas City, but struggled with back pain and wasn’t able to sit down in the dugout between innings. The six-time All-Star is 8-6 with a 5.11 ERA in 18 starts this season.
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