John Matthews
WMAL.com
ASHBURN, VA — (WMAL) Days after releasing their third-string quarterback, the Redskins have made a deal to hold on to number two.
Veteran quarterback Colt McCoy is planning to sign up for a third year with Washington, and serve as the primary backup to Kirk Cousins, according to a report by ESPN’s Adam Schefter. .
McCoy, 29, played in five games in 2014, starting four of them, including a dramatic win over the Cowboys in Dallas. He completed 71 percent of his passes, throwing for four touchdowns and three interceptions. In fact, McCoy had earned the team’s starting quarterback job, before he suffered a season-ending neck injury.
McCoy returned to the team in 2015 with hopes of winning the starting job again, but ended up behind Kirk Cousins. McCoy did get into two games last season, completing 7 of 11 passes for 128 yards and one touchdown.
Redskins coach Jay Gruden has been vocal about bringing back McCoy. “You can never have too many good quarterbacks in your building,” Gruden said at last month’s NFL combine. “You’ve got to have two at least. It’s a very physical game and quarterbacks have been lost for long periods of time, short periods of time. You need another one to come in and compete and do well. And Colt’s a guy that can do that and proven he can do that.”
Before joining Washington, McCoy played for both Cleveland and San Francisco. The former third-round pick from Texas has played in 35 career games with 26 touchdowns and 23 interceptions.
It’s likely the Redskins will look to add at least one more arm to the roster to provide depth in training camp, but McCoy, who’s been a vocal advocate of Gruden’s offense, should be a lock behind Cousins.
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