Inside Slant

The Sports Xchange

November 22, 2018 at 1:34 am.

QB McCoy’s chance has finally come

The Washington Redskins’ backup quarterback since 2015 and on the roster for five years, Colt McCoy will take over under center when his team plays the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day.

McCoy didn’t take a snap in 2016 behind Kirk Cousins and was on the field for just four snaps in 2017. He appeared in just two games in 2015 in relief of Cousins. That all changes after Redskins quarterback Alex Smith broke his right leg Sunday against the Houston Texans, a gruesome injury that could keep him out of action until well into next summer.

McCoy came on in relief and completed 6-of-12 passes for 54 yards and a touchdown in a 23-21 loss. He was sacked twice. But this is the opportunity McCoy has been waiting for since 2014 when he outlasted an overmatched Cousins and an injured Robert Griffin III. He entered in relief in a Week 7 win over Tennessee and in Week 8 shocked the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium on a Monday Night Football game 20-17.

Griffin returned for three games and was terrible. McCoy – with Cousins relegated to third string – was all set to start the final five games. A neck injury limited him to just the first quarter of the second start in that series. His chance had evaporated.

“Now is not a time to really kind of think about what got me to this point right here. Now, it’s time to play,” McCoy said. “I rely on a lot of the preparation I’ve put in the last several years when Kirk (Cousins) was here. Kirk never got hurt. He played well, but I was always ready to play. You know the same thing with Alex (Smith). Now my preparation is going to be key this week, but at the same time, I’m fortunate that we’ve played Dallas once already this year so I’ve been through that game prep, that preparation. I mean it’s a huge game let’s be honest.”

Talking to reporters after he left that Dec. 2014 game against the New York Giants, knowing his season was done with the neck injury, McCoy gritted his teeth and slammed his suitcase up and down after he was asked about the missed opportunity to prove his case as a starting NFL quarterback.

Four years later, at the site of his biggest win as an NFL quarterback, in his home state, McCoy gets another chance. The Redskins lead the NFC East at 6-4. They are a game ahead of the Cowboys (5-5) and two ahead of the Philadelphia Eagles (4-6).

SERIES HISTORY: 116th regular-season meeting. Cowboys lead series, 70-43-2. Washington has won both playoff games. The Redskins won the last game at FedExField, 20-17, on Oct. 21. Dallas had won the previous four games.