Found this little nugget in an article about the cluster-eff that is the Redskins... "As for the big one, I don’t think the Skins are afraid to lose Cousins, and the reason is Colt McCoy. Is the 30-year-old McCoy a 10-year answer for Washington at the position? No. But he can be what Cousins can’t be at this point, and that’s a bridge quarterback, which is why the question isn’t Cousins versus McCoy in a vacuum. It’s the brass buying Cousins and hitching its job security to his successes and failures, versus renting McCoy while looking for a younger upgrade at the position." Reading between the lines, it would seem that people DO recognize that he isn't going to be a highlight reel QB but he also isn't going to sink a program...of course, we all know that all he does is win games. Would be nice to see what he could do at that level with even a halfway-decent O-line and a chance to play on a regular basis.
Backup QBs aren't as "available" as everyone thinks they are. There are probably only 7-8 in the entire league that a team would be comfortable with if their starter went down, and Colt is definitely one of them. It's also the reason that Jimmy Garoppolo has become the next big thing in free agency price-gouging circles. Now, I don't necessarily agree that the Skins are "ok" if Colt is their starter. Other than beating the Cowboys by playing mistake-free ball 3 seasons ago (which is his ONLY win in the past 5 seasons), I think the perception is that he's just a good old backup dude who takes care of his conditioning and practice reps and works his *** off in the film room to be ready to go. Which is all you can hope for in a backup. Hence, Washington's attitude about letting Cousins go isn't rooted in having Colt play... it's about having him stay as a backup while they get someone else.
I'm not sure any franchise wants to rely on a QB as their starter with Colt's concussion history. He's a great insurance policy if you are looking for a short-term replacement. I doubt any team, including the Redskins, would be excited about the prospects of him being the starter for a full season.
Although he had 1 or 2 games where he came in for Cousins and the team won, but since he didn't play the first snap, it doesn't count.
