McCoy injury likely makes Keenum Skins’ top QB
Matthew Berry expects Trey Quinn to have the most fantasy impact in PPR leagues. (1:41)
ASHBURN, Virginia — The Washington Redskins remain uncertain about when quarterback Colt McCoy will be able to play in a game, leaving Case Keenum on track to start the season opener.
McCoy has yet to play in the preseason and said Sunday that he has visited noted foot specialist Dr. Robert Anderson twice since training camp began on July 25. McCoy suffered a broken right leg on Dec. 1 and needed three surgeries in the offseason. He has practiced throughout camp, but admitted early on that he was still having issues with his leg. He has not played in the preseason and did not practice Sunday.
McCoy said he did not have a setback in camp and said he expects to return “sooner rather than later.”
“It might be two or three weeks into the season,” Redskins coach Jay Gruden said of when McCoy might return. “We don’t know yet. There’s no timetable for him until he feels like he’s 100% to push off that leg. Until that time comes, he’s going to be rehabbing.”
But nobody quite knows when, or why it remains an issue. However, when he was hurt last season, the Redskins did not place him on injured reserve, thinking he might be available should they reach the postseason.
“That was probably part of the issue,” Gruden said. “He probably rushed back, we probably rushed him back. So they had to go back in a little bit. That was nobody’s fault, just a fluke deal that something else happened. Hopefully we get him right. He’ll do whatever he can to get right, we’ve just got to get it right first.”
Throughout training camp McCoy has been alternating with Keenum on a daily basis as far as who takes the first-team reps.
Keenum has started the first two preseason games. He has completed 7-of-16 passes for 112 yards and one touchdown.
Gruden was not ready to name a starting quarterback, but said “ideally” one would be named after the third preseason game. The Redskins play at Atlanta on Thursday. They play at Philadelphia in the season opener.
“You might have your general thoughts on who it might be, but if something happens in the preseason game three where you might have to flop them, you never know,” Gruden said.
Rookie Dwayne Haskins remains a possibility, but numerous people in the organization — from front-office personnel to coaches and players — have echoed the same point: He’s talented but has a lot to learn before being ready to start. Because he’s considered a pure drop-back passer — and doesn’t rely on his legs to threaten a defense — the Redskins want him to master as many of the nuances of the position as possible before putting him in the game.
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During training camp, Haskins, the 15th overall pick in the draft, consistently worked third in the rotation among the quarterbacks. In the preseason games, they have played some of the starting offensive line with him when he’s been in the game. Gruden said they might give him more time with the starters Thursday. In two games, Haskins has completed 15-of-29 passes for 231 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. He’s been sacked five times and fumbled once.
The coaches and Haskins have pointed out how much he’s still learning, from calling the plays in the huddle to handling protection calls and throwing in rhythm. They liked last week how, on his 55-yard touchdown pass, his hard count forced the safeties to rotate early. That enabled him to alter the protection and change his progression pre-snap.
Last week, Haskins told ESPN, “It’s just going to happen naturally, organically. I had to come to terms with that. Now that I’ve been here for a little bit, it’s like, man, it’s a process. … By no means am I settling. I know that I want to be great and I know I will be great. It’s just that I have to be in a place where I know what I’m doing.”