Tyson Bagent looks like he’s nearing a return just in time for Monday Night Football. However, Jay Glazer of FOX Sports indicated that the Chicago Bears‘ plan is still to start Case Keenum. The primary reasoning is simple. They feel Bagent didn’t get enough work learning the game plan this week. Add his concussion issues on top of that, and it just feels more sensible to go with Keenum. His experience should be a considerable benefit in keeping the offense from getting too far out of sync.
There could be another factor. Keenum has had decent success going against Vic Fangio. The Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive coordinator has been among the NFL’s best for a long time. His unit was the primary reason that the team won a Super Bowl two years ago. It’s still as dangerous as ever. Keenum would know. He has gone against it a few times in his career. As a starter, he has faced Fangio three times. Keenum is 3-0 in those contests, completing over 71% of his passes with 3 touchdowns and no interceptions.
| Date | Matchup | Game Result | Cmp / Att | Cmp % | Passing Yds | TD / INT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 9, 2017 | MIN @ CHI | W 20–17 | 17 / 21 | 81.0% | 140 | 1 / 0 |
| Dec 31, 2017 | MIN vs. CHI | W 23–10 | 21 / 29 | 72.4% | 189 | 1 / 0 |
| Oct 21, 2021 | CLE vs. DEN | W 17–14 | 21 / 33 | 63.6% | 199 | 1 / 0 |
| Total | 3-0 | 59 / 83 | 71.1% | 528 | 3 / 0 |
Case Keenum understands his job going against Fangio.
Efficiency is the name of the game. It is highly unlikely that he will be able to put up significant numbers. Few can. The goal must be to stay ahead of the sticks, distribute the ball, and avoid turnovers. He accomplished that objective in each of those three games. The game plan was the same every time. Manage the game, run the ball, and hope the defense gives you some support. Fortunately, Keenum got it in all three. His offenses averaged 162 yards on the ground across all three contests.
You can bet the Bears hope to duplicate this strategy on Monday night. They’re equipped to do so. Johnson’s system is geared toward running the ball, and they have the pieces in place. Philadelphia is only 23rd in the league against the run. Case Keenum understands how to adhere to a run-first game plan. He does it quite well. Victory is not guaranteed for the Bears. Still, they’re at least fielding a quarterback who understands the challenge ahead of him and has experience dealing with it.
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Will it be enough?
That depends entirely on which Bears team shows up. If they arrive with urgency, this is a game they can still win. They’re at home. They are equipped to attack the Eagles’ biggest weaknesses. If they can just avoid the costly mistakes they made last week, this should be a game they can steal. On the other hand, if they let the Eagles set the tone early, it can just as easily get away from them. This is one of those games where we’ll see just how good a coach Johnson is.
Keenum has been here before. He’s been thrust into a situation where he had to replace a former #1 overall pick and try to keep the train on the tracks. It worked out then. Maybe it can again. The Bears have the utmost confidence in him. Maybe there’s some magic left in that old body for one more upset. Doing it against Fangio would be rather fitting.
