Neither of these items will surprise Minnesota Vikings fans: The Vikings have not yet discussed a contract for 2018 with quarterback Case Keenum and offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur may be in line for a head coaching job next season.
ProFootball Talk is reporting that the Vikings are going to wait until the end of the season to decide which direction they’re headed at quarterback. Keenum has won eight of his 10 appearances while putting up solid numbers, but the Vikings may still look to Teddy Bridgewater as their long-term quarterback option. Mike Florio wrote:
“Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the team intends to wait to decide on their 2018 quarterback after the 2017 season fully plays itself out. It’s a risky strategy, given that none of the quarterbacks under contract for 2017 — Case Keenum, Teddy Bridgewater, Sam Bradford, and Kyle Sloter — has a deal beyond the current season. (Sloter will be an exclusive rights free agent, which means the Vikings can control his rights with a minimum-salary tender.)”
While risky, it also wouldn’t make sense to decide on Keenum as the franchise QB when there are still five games to be played and he’s coming off a hot three-game stretch. However, the situation does call for the Vikings finding an opportunity somewhere over that stretch to play Bridgewater and get an idea of how he might look with a fully-repaired knee.
Florio also reported that offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, who has been the driver of the Vikings’ offensive success, is getting attention as a possible head coaching candidate for 2018. Florio said:
“He’s getting more and more buzz for a second shot at being a head coach (in hindsight, a 10-23 record during two years with the Browns doesn’t look all that awful), and if he leaves the Vikings will need a new coordinator. That person, whoever it is, will have plenty of influence over who the quarterback will be, especially since the head coach is a defensive specialist.
Also, don’t rule out Shurmur making a run at Keenum, as his first order of free-agency business as a second-time head coach.”
The post Report: No contract talks yet for Keenum, Shurmur getting head coaching buzz appeared first on 1500 ESPN Twin Cities.
Source:: 1500 ESPN Sportswire
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