Case Keenum may have surpassed T.J. Yates in the depth chart this week, according to head coach Gary Kubiak. While a final decision will not be made before Thursday, Keenum's performance in the Texans 27-13 win over Minnesota tipped the scales in Keenum's favor.
"We'll probably talk about that on Thursday," Kubiak said. "Like I said, my thought process right now is for Case to go second, so that I can get this thing evened out in the long haul. That's part of the deal, but whatever happens, they're going to end up playing right now."
In Friday's 27-13 win at Minnesota, Yates, who led the team in passing, went 13-for-21 for 151 yards, one touchdown and a quarterback passer rating of 99.5. Keenum was 13-for-18 with 125 yards, one touchdown, and a passer rating of 109.7. Yates, the current backup behind Matt Schaub, orchestrated a 12-play, 85-yard drive that ended in a 34-yard touchdown to rookie wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, his first in the NFL. Keenum, a former University of Houston star quarterback who was signed off the practice squad last season, led two drives that ended in touchdowns and one that yielded a 21-yard field goal by Randy Bullock.
With Schaub out for Monday and Tuesday's practice due to a death in the family, both Keenum and Yates have been receiving more repetitions and the opportunity to practice with the first-team squad.
"They're both doing some good things and both doing some bonehead things, but what an opportunity for two kids," Kubiak said. "It's very competitive. We get to go back right now and look at about 50 reps this morning and see how they played. The whole team's watching too, so it's an interesting situation that I think is making everyone better and obviously there are a lot of things that they've got to improve upon, but we knew that before we even came out here."
