QBs Heinicke, Keenum are battling to decide pecking order

MANKATO — It's a given that Sam Bradford will be the Minnesota Vikings starting quarterback this season if he can avoid serious injury.

After that, the quarterback picture becomes a little murky. Teddy Bridgewater is rehabbing from a serious knee injury he suffered last preseason and it's not known if or when he may return to NFL competition.

That leaves fifth-year player Case Keenum and third-year passer Taylor Heinicke as the favorites for the backup positions. Exactly who will be No. 2 and who will be No. 3 has yet to be decided.

Both players have received quite a few snaps during training camp.

“We as a group of quarterbacks just come out here everyday and try to get better at the position. It is all we need to worry about,” Heinicke said after Monday's practice.

The Old Dominion alum made the team as a rookie free agent in 2015, after compiling a solid senior season for the Monarchs, passing for 3,476 yards and 30 touchdowns with a completion percentage of 63.2.

The 2016 season was supposed to be a year of more opportunity for Heinicke, but his season was cut short early with a bizarre injury that required ankle surgery two weeks before training camp started. The injury was caused by the quarterback cutting himself trying to get into his own home, because he did not have a key.

If the injury had not happened, Heinicke could have challenged Shaun Hill for the backup spot and possibly started Week 1 after Bridgewater went down.

“This is another year with learning the playbook under your belt," Heinicke said. "When you go out there, everything is much slower and easier to comprehend.”

Keenum has a lot more NFL experience. He has played for the Houston Texans and the St. Louis Rams beginning in 2012. He's started 24 games, thrown for 5,224 yards and 24 touchdowns and has been intercepted 20 times.

Before his pro career began, Keenum played his college ball at Houston where he set NCAA records for total passing yards, touchdowns and completions.

Although Keenum has the experience, he knows that doesn't mean much. How he and Heinicke play in practice and in preseason games will determine who fits where behind Bradford.

"You can't worry about depth charts at this point in the preseason," he said. "You have to go out and prove yourself everyday. It doesn't matter if you've been here a month or six years, the best guys are going to get the opportunities."

Neither quarterback has been told how much he will play on Thursday when the Vikings have their first preseason game at Buffalo. It's likely that both backups will get some playing time since Bradford has little to prove during the preseason.

"It's my first year in this system, and I think I'm coming along OK," Keenum said. "I'm my own worst critic so I know I have a lot things I can get better at. It's just a matter of getting the repetition in practice and working with the receivers."

If the Keenum-Heinicke battle is close after three preseason games, it's likely the fourth one will be the deciding factor. The fourth preseason game is traditionally when NFL teams rest starters, enabling the backups to get plenty of playing time.

"You can't worry about that now," Keenum said. "You just have to try to seize your opportunities when they are presented to you."