Dwayne Haskins, Case Keenum or Colt McCoy?
That’s the question Washington Redskins coach Jay Gruden must answer ahead of Sunday’s matchup with the mighty New England Patriots.
And with just four days to go before kickoff, the answer remains unclear.
“We don’t have one right now,” Gruden said Wednesday on a conference call when asked what his plan at quarterback is. “I’m going to go out here at practice today. We have individual and a little bit of work we’re going to do, and we’ll see the health of the guys, first of all. See where Dwayne’s at, and I’ll make a decision shortly.”
Asked when he expects to make that decision, he joked: “I don’t know yet. I might just wait until Sunday at 1 o’clock and figure it out then.”
Keenum has started each of Washington’s four games this season — all losses. Haskins, the team’s top pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, entered in relief midway through the second quarter last Sunday and struggled in his NFL debut, throwing three interceptions on 17 pass attempts in a 24-3 loss to the New York Giants.
McCoy has yet to play this season after breaking his leg last December, but he has far more experience in Gruden’s system than either of his fellow signal-callers. The former Texas star has been Washington’s primary backup since 2014, Gruden’s first season with the team.
The Redskins’ offensive issues aren’t limited to QB play, however. They currently rank 29th in scoring offense, 29th in total offense, 29th in third-down conversion percentage and are tied for 29th in turnovers.
“Whichever quarterback it is, No. 1 we’ve got to protect him if we’re going to throw it. We’ve got to do a better job protecting him, and our receivers have got to do a good job and tight ends and backs have got to do a great job of getting separation.
“I don’t care who the quarterbacks are. If we don’t have good protection and we can’t get separation, Tom Brady wouldn’t have any success here.”
