Redskins sign former Baylor quarterback Jalan McClendon

The Redskins entered their second week of preseason with a need for a reserve quarterback.

That need came to light when the Washington Redskins initial fourth quarterback, Josh Woodrum, went down with a chest injury in the fourth quarter of the team’s preseason debut against the Cleveland Browns.

Later on, an MRI revealed that Woodrum had torn his pectoral muscle, and that his 2019 season was over. The Redskins consequently needed a quarterback to take over reserve reps and throw to the roster hopefuls in the absence of the top three signal callers. They worked out Michigan State product and former Radiers quarterback Connor Cook yesterday, and with him, they also worked out Jalan McClendon, a signal caller out of Baylor.

This morning, it was revealed by ESPN’s John Keim, and several other Redskins beat reporters, that the Redskins had signed McClendon to be their fourth quarterback for the remainder of preseason.

Unlike Cook, who has a good amount of NFL experience for a backup, McClendon is an undrafted rookie who played in 23 total games in his collegiate career. A three-star prospect out of high school, McClendon was rostered with the North Carolina State Wolfpack for three years. There, he completed 26 of 47 passes for 262 yards, one touchdown, and four interceptions. Notably, he was teammates with Redskins sixth-round pick Kelvin Harmon for three years. After his junior year, he transferred to Baylor to battle Charlie Brewer for the starting spot.

McClendon lost the battle for the Bears’ starting job, and he became the team’s backup. In his one season with the Bears, he saw more action than his three years at NC State combined. He completed 55 of 91 passes for 715 yards, three touchdowns, and three interceptions, showing modest improvement from his early years. He went undrafted in the 2019 NFL Draft and spent time with the Ravens offseason program before eventually landing in Washington.

McClendon, 6-foot-5, 219, has intriguing size and mobility for the quarterback position, and it will be interesting to see how he fares in the inevitable preseason snaps coming his way. On Rotoworld’s website, there’s a report from January that describes McClendon as a quarterback who “possesses great size, poise in the pocket, and impressive arm velocity”. He also impressed teams at the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl with his football acumen.

Whatever the case, McClendon is unlikely to stick around, as the Redskins have three solid quarterback options. But if he impresses enough, perhaps he could convince the Redskins to keep him on the practice squad, in hopes of becoming the team’s eventual long-term backup.