The Broncos lost for the first time since their Week 10 bye against the 49ers last Sunday and their 6-7 record leaves them looking like a long shot for the playoffs.
Head coach Vance Joseph would like to see a more aggressive Case Keenum as they take that long shot. Joseph said that he felt Keenum “was a little cautious” on Sunday while going 24-of-42 for 186 yards and a touchdown and that he’d like to see the risk level go up.
That may lead to big plays, but it may also lead to the interceptions that Keenum has eliminated from his game in recent weeks. He threw 10 in the first eight games, but has not been intercepted in his last 176 attempts. Joseph acknowledged that possibility, but it doesn’t change what he wants to see from Keenum.
“The bottom line is we got three weeks to play and he’s got to make more plays and sometimes taking some chances allows you to make more plays,” Joseph said, via Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic. “There are going to be turnovers, so he can’t worry about it. You can’t play this game perfectly. I want Case to be more aggressive, especially down the seams over those Cover 3 defenses. That’s where the soft spots are, so he’s got to be aggressive down the seams and not worry about making mistakes.”
Beyond Keenum’s interception risk, the makeup of the receiving corps may also be an obstacle to this approach. Demaryius Thomas is in Houston and Emmanuel Sanders, Jeff Heuerman and Jake Butt are on injured reserve, which leaves little established reliability in the receiving corps for the final three games.
