Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins was suited up for Friday’s game, but did not take a snap. The plan is for him to play at least a half this Friday against the Buffalo Bills. (Nick Wass/Associated Press)

Kirk Cousins found himself in an unusual situation shortly before last Friday’s preseason game, when Jay Gruden came to him and told him to take the night off.

The Washington Redskins coach listed several reasons for his decision; a shortened work week thanks to the move from training camp in Richmond to team headquarters in Ashburn, a desire to further evaluate some of the backups, and being encouraged by Cousins’s play thus far among them.

So, Cousins, who in the preseason opener went 5-for-5 passing, but didn’t throw for a touchdown pass, awkwardly tried to enjoy the luxury that he had earned. It was quite the change from the previous four years, when as a backup, he always had to prepare on limited repetitions, and craved every snap possible to prove himself.

But now as he enters his second season as an NFL starter – with a quality body of work to show for during the offseason practices and training camp – preseason game action carries lesser importance.

Gruden said Cousins would play anywhere from a half to three quarters in this week’s third preseason game. And he looks forward to what will be a final dress rehearsal for the Sept. 12 regular season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Confident in his starting role, Kirk Cousins says, “when you’re not fighting for that roster spot necessarily, [you can] test to see, ‘Can I fit that ball in there, and how can I learn from this pass?’ and try some things that you may fail in practice.” (Nick Wass/Associated Press)

But whether he plays a quarter, two or into the third, the quarterback believes he will enter the regular season well prepared.

“I feel like I’ve gotten a lot more than five passes because of how many reps I’m getting every day in practice,” Cousins explained on Monday. “As the starting quarterback, I’m getting a lot of reps, so it’s more than I would’ve as a backup quarterback. I feel very ready, and more importantly, probably is the fact that we’ve had the entire week to get ready, like a normal rhythm to a game week. Those two things will get you as about as prepared as you can.”

He later added, “To play in a preseason game, I think is helpful. I don’t know that I need to play in four. But to play in some is very helpful, and I think that’s what this Friday night will be all about: getting that rhythm so that when we do go out there against the Steelers on Monday night, you feel like you’ve been there and you’re ready to go, and it hasn’t been too long since you last took a snap in a stadium in a game-like atmosphere against a different opponent.”

Gruden and offensive coordinator Sean McVay have both praised Cousins for his effectiveness during training camp and the preseason practices that have followed.

The quarterback certainly hasn’t been perfect. But he has been sharp, displaying good accuracy in the mid-range passing game, improving effectiveness on his deep balls and a showing good command of the offense as he comes to the line and starts directing traffic.

Cousins has thrown interceptions here and there. But he chalked some of those up to a desire to experiment with certain throws and situations. That freedom to do so comes from the confidence of knowing the starting job belongs to him, and no longer feeling like coaches have him on a short leash.

“As a backup, I was always trying to play well enough so the coaches would go back and say, ‘We can’t wait for this guy to get on the field. It doesn’t have to be this Sunday, it may not be this season. But it’s exciting to see the way he practices, and how efficient he is, and we can’t wait to see him in a real game,” Cousins said. “That was always my mind-set. . . . When you’re not fighting for that roster spot necessarily, day in and day out, you can build more for Week 1 and test to see, ‘Can I fit that ball in there, and how can I learn from this pass?’ and try some things that you may fail in practice, only so you can build and be better for the regular season.”

He continued, “I go back to some interceptions I threw in training camp where maybe the thinking was less conservative because I was testing to see, ‘Can I fit this ball into that window?’ and then you see, ‘Okay. I can’t and it’s good I did it here in training camp instead of a Monday night game against the Steelers.”

Aside from injured running back Matt Jones, Cousins figures to have the rest of Washington’s starters on the field with him for the first time Friday night. Left tackle Trent Williams, tight end Jordan Reed and slot receiver Jamison Crowder all missed the preseason opener with minor injuries. But all three should play against Buffalo this week.

Williams called this week “a big game for me,” because he wants some game-speed reps in advance of the Steelers game. But he said “It’s just we need quality reps. Whether it’s 50 or whether it’s 40, it’s got to be quality and it’s gotta be smart football.”

Wide receiver Pierre Garcon — another healthy scratch in last week’s game — agreed with Williams and shared the confidence of his quarterback and head coach.

“You can never really 100 percent simulate a game, but we’ll be ready regardless,” Garcon said. “Everybody on offense is a veteran, we’ve been doing it a long time, and whatever comes up, we’ll have to overcome it. . . . There’s always things to get better, but we’re well in sync with Kirk and what we’re supposed to be as an offense. We’ll keep getting better from last year. But we’re well in sync.”