Grading the Redskins quarterbacks on their 2017 performance
Overall Grade
At the end of the day, the Redskins were one of the few teams across the league that kept only two quarterbacks on their active roster for a majority of the 2017 season. They obviously have confidence in their two quarterbacks, which is a great sign, but still, letting Sudfeld go before the season was still a surprise.
In an odd way, it seems like both Cousins and McCoy had good seasons. Cousins’ performance on the field was solid and McCoy seems to have won the hearts of the front office. McCoy was always going to be the backup, but now there’s a chance he could get a shot at starting if Cousins leaves. There’s no knowing whether or not that’s going to happen, but if someone wants to pay Cousins big for his B-minus level performance, McCoy may get a shot at stepping in.
One thing that wasn’t established at the quarterback position this year that the team really needed was clarity. Cousins had another up-and-down season and while there were more positives, it’s still hard to justify giving him a huge deal. One would imagine that the Redskins would have rather seen Cousins have a great year or a poor year so that they could determine the best course of action regarding his status. Instead, it was another middling year that was just above average enough to drive the price up.
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At the end of the day, the quarterbacks for the Redskins deserve the same grade that Cousins got. It’s simple. McCoy had a good offseason but didn’t play in the regular season. Cousins did and was above average but inconsistent. For that reason, they will keep a B-range grade and see if they can improve on it in 2018.