https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/r ... 60eb826162
By Liz Clarke December 23 at 1:48 PM
For the past three years, Colt McCoy has been Kirk Cousins’s extension on the practice fields at Redskins Park — reading coverages as Cousins would, making throws that coverage dictates as Cousins would and ensuring wide receivers run routes the way Cousins would expect — all in service of Coach Jay Gruden’s offense.
If Cousins moves on next season — whether because the Washington Redskins decide not to pay what’s required to broker a long-term deal or another reason — it might represent the opportunity McCoy has worked toward since arriving in Washington: a chance to drop the role play that his job as the team’s No. 2 quarterback requires and make Gruden’s offense his own.
If McCoy is eyed skeptically by those who remember his rocky start in Cleveland or point to a 7-18 career record as an NFL starter, he’s regarded with respect in the Redskins’ locker room.
“Shoot, Colt is an extremely talented player,” said six-time Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams. “Like a lot of No. 2 quarterbacks in the league, all he needs is an opportunity with the right situation, and you see them flourish. It happens all the time. Look at Kirk. Look at Colin Kaepernick. Aaron Rodgers was a backup for a long while. Any time you see a No. 2 quarterback that a team would hold on to and extend, like they did with Colt, you know they see something in him.”
McCoy has bought completely into the backup role, executing the job in good faith and with total commitment, qualities not lost on Gruden. And when the coach cycled through all three quarterbacks his first year in Washington, it was McCoy, a former Heisman Trophy runner-up at Texas, who delivered the only victory of consequence in 2014 — a 20-17 overtime upset at Dallas.
McCoy’s professionalism and command of the offense are largely why the Redskins signed him to a three-year extension in March 2016 worth $9 million. It’s also why Gruden felt comfortable keeping just two quarterbacks on the roster this season rather than the customary three, without a developmental prospect on the practice squad.
“Colt McCoy hogs every rep on the scout team,” Gruden said with a laugh, his admiration obvious, when asked about the decision. “He won’t let the other guy do anything, so the third quarterback just stands there and plays catch. He’s not really developing. At the end of the day, and with the injuries we’ve had, that [roster] spot is important.”
