The thirty-four-year-old Keenum was signed to a three-year contract in 2020 to backup Baker Mayfield and would win both of his starts (three touchdown passes and one interception) in relief of Mayfield in 2021 but was owed a one million roster bonus on the third day of the start of the league season and the Browns didn't see Keenum as a good fit as the backup to the newly acquired DeShaun Watson at a pricey 6.1 million additional dollars under the cap.
Keenum was being paid a lot of money to be able to step in should Baker Mayfield be injured and yet Mayfield was injured for much of the season, head coach Kevin Stefanski didn't seem to have the needed confidence in Keenum to sit the battered Mayfield.
It says a lot when you pay millions for a backup for an emergency situation and when that time arrives, you don't feel good enough about that player to put him in the lineup.
It's always a good idea to have your backup quarterback resemble your starter's skills or style because it doesn't force a complete revamp of what you like to do to accommodate the second-stringer when he needs to play.
The Browns addressed that with the addition of Jacoby Brissett to a one-year contract for an undisclosed amount.
The 29-year-old Brissett played in eleven games last season with the Dolphins, making five starts off the bench and finishing 2-3 in those starts, throwing five touchdowns and four interceptions.
2021 was Brissett's first season with Miami after four years with the Colts, who traded for him in 2017 after Brissett's rookie season with New England, who drafted him in the third round from N.C. State in 2016.
The mobile 6'4 Brissett is similar to DeShaun Watson in many of the things that he likes to do and while I was hoping for Marcos Mariota, who is even more similar in style to Watson, it could have been that Mariota had wanted more money than the Browns wanted to pay or even that Mariota could have preferred to sign with a team where he might have an opportunity to start which could be the same teams that could be interested in a trade for Baker Mayfield. who remains on the roster for now.
Jacoby Brissett should be a good fit for the Browns as a backup and the questions now are where does Baker Mayfield go, what do the Browns receive in return, and who could be the Browns' third-string arm, which is more interesting than usual as that player would be only one hit away from playing during a potential Watson suspension.
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