Colt McCoy didn’t promise anything special, but why would he? It had been almost three years since he had seen any meaningful playing time, assuming 28 snaps in a late-December game would qualify, and he was the backup quarterback, playing behind someone whom the Washington Redskins held in very high regard.
Still, a cousin, a friend, their spouses and young children wanted to go to FedEx Field on Sunday to watch McCoy play, and considering they were visiting from Texas and staying at McCoy’s home, how could he deny them that chance? Into the car they packed, headed from Northern Virginia, an hour east to the stadium, where they sat in the upper deck in the chilling mid-October breeze and witnessed more than they could have ever expected McCoy to provide.
The third-string quarterback at the start of the season, McCoy replaced Kirk Cousins after halftime, then helped the Redskins end a four-game losing streak with a 19-17 victory over the Tennessee Titans.
McCoy completed 11 of 12 passes for 128 yards and a touchdown, which, somewhat fittingly, was the result of his first throw of the afternoon. His first six passes were caught before the seventh, a throw to Jordan Reed just inside the end zone, was swatted away by a Titans defensive back.
And, after a stalled drive that ended with a sack and a three-and-out with under six minutes remaining, McCoy returned, guiding a 10-play series to the Titans’ 4-yard line, leaving a layup of a game-winning field goal for Kai Forbath.
“I looked them in the eyes,” McCoy said, “and said, ’Hey, I’m going to do my job. You do yours, and we’re going to win this game.’”
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McCoy arrived in Washington in April, signed on a one-year free-agent contract because of the allure of playing for new coach Jay Gruden. Though he spent last season as the backup in San Francisco, he played his first three in Cleveland, where he started for the better part of his first two years and, for four games, watched Gruden operate division rival Cincinnati’s offense.
It would be virtually impossible for McCoy to surpass starter Robert Griffin III, let alone Cousins, but he was sold on the uncertainty of the future. The draft had not yet taken place, and Cousins, who had played well in spot duty for Griffin over the first two seasons, was a commodity. The gamble McCoy took, then, was that Cousins would move elsewhere during the offseason, allowing him to settle into a more accommodating backup role.
That never happened. Instead, McCoy lingered through offseason workouts, and then training camp, and then the preseason, all the while never taking a snap with the entire first-team offense. His role during practice, even after Griffin dislocated his ankle in Week 2, was to run the scout team, simulating for the Redskins’ defense what the opponent had shown on film in previous weeks.
“You hope you don’t have to go to No. 3, but if you do, you want it to be somebody like Colt, who is a pro,” Gruden said.
Cousins, bogged down by turnovers in his four starts for Griffin, fumbled the ball away in the first quarter and threw an interception in the second. At halftime, Gruden told Cousins he would sit, tabbing McCoy to rescue the Redskins despite being down only one point.
The plan for McCoy, offensively, was simple. Gruden and offensive coordinator Sean McVay had already been leaning on the running game, and McCoy would be asked merely to complement it with quick, high-percentage, short-yardage throws.
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“You can tell that it wasn’t his first rodeo,” said center Kory Lichtensteiger. “He wasn’t intimidated by the situation. I think he did a good job of leading us, saying what he needed to say and getting the play calls out.”
After a run on McCoy’s first play from scrimmage, the quarterback turned to Pierre Garçon on second down, connecting on a 10-yard hitch that turned into a 70-yard touchdown reception when Garçon broke free of cornerback Blidi Wreh-Wilson and raced down the left sideline.
And, with 3:14 left in the fourth quarter, McCoy settled in. He found Reed for nine yards and Garçon for three and Andre Roberts for 10. One deep throw to DeSean Jackson was called back by penalty, and on another, he recognized a Tennessee blitz — the same one they brought on a sack five and a half minutes earlier — and put the ball in Jackson’s hands, with another penalty putting the Redskins at Tennessee’s doorstep.
“We got completions, made some big plays and marched right down the field,” McCoy said. “I’m just thankful to be a part of it.”
Afterward, McCoy thanked players who had routinely stayed after practice to catch his throws. He chatted briefly with Griffin, and Cousins, and McVay, who offered a select few coaching tips. He spoke for more than 10 minutes at a press conference, then answered questions from a local television station, then went on the phone with satellite radio.
Then McCoy walked out of the Redskins’ locker room, grabbed a dinner prepared for players and headed up the ramp and across the street. The sunset beckoned, and there was an unlikely celebration at home to enjoy.
• Zac Boyer can be reached at zboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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