Many thought that the Washington Redskins' season had come to an unofficial end when Alex Smith was carted off of the field following a gruesome leg injury, but don't tell any of the players that. They still have postseason hopes, and trust that backup quarterback Colt McCoy can get the job done.

There's not many things worse than seeing the leader of your offense being taken off the field with an air cast around his right leg. It can be hard for a player to get refocused after watching their teammate's season end in the blink of an eye, especially if you're the backup coming in to replace him. But McCoy seemed poised, which is exactly what you want to see out of your backup.

McCoy hadn't thrown a pass in a regular-season game since 2015, but came in and delivered. The Redskins were down 17-7 when McCoy entered the game, and on his first drive, he delivered a nine-yard pass to Jordan Reed for a touchdown, his first touchdown pass in three years.

After Houston converted on a field goal the next series, McCoy came right back and took his team 67 yards down the field on 10 plays on a drive which ended with an Adrian Peterson touchdown that gave Washington a one-point advantage with 11:57 remaining in the fourth quarter. After the Texans converted on another field goal, McCoy was given 52 seconds to drive his team down the field for a chance at a game-winning field goal. He was able to gain 20 yards before time started to run out, and Dustin Hopkins was brought out for a 63-yard attempt. The kick was short however, and Washington lost 23-21.

It was weird how momentum shifted in the Redskins' favor when their starting quarterback was injured. Five plays after Smith exited the game, Deshaun Watson was intercepted near his own red zone, which gave the Redskins good field position to cut the deficit to single digits. McCoy was able to get his team points in two of his four drives, and he was just a couple of yards away from setting up Hopkins with an easier attempt that would have won the game. Overall, the 32-year old backup was pretty impressive in relief duty, and Redskins fans should be at least cautiously optimistic moving forward. Even the Texans defense had to give him credit after the game.

"He's a good quarterback," said Texans defensive end J.J. Watt of McCoy. "It's not like there's a massive drop-off there."

The Redskins locker room was understandably quiet on Sunday afternoon, their starting quarterback had a broken leg and they had just lost, but McCoy made sure to tell his team that he's ready to take over, and fully capable of doing so.

After the game, Redskins cornerback Josh Norman approached McCoy, and the Redskins' new signal caller told him, "You're in good hands with me."

"I can take that all day," Norman said.

The players seemed to echo that statement, and told reporters after the game they aren't too concerned moving forward.

"Colt's always ready," center Chase Roullier said.

McCoy isn't going to have to be Tom Brady-esque for the Redskins to be good in the final few weeks. Smith wasn't putting up career numbers and the Redskins still won six of their first nine games. In fact, he had just recently crossed the 2,000-yard mark and has thrown for just 10 touchdowns and five interceptions. That's not a knock on Smith, the Redskins offense just wasn't leaning on him as much as other teams do on their quarterbacks. McCoy's main objectives will be to keep the offense on the field and limit turnovers, and if he can do that, the Redskins have a good chance to make the playoffs.

Washington is still in first place in the NFC East at 6-4, but have a divisional matchup with the surging Dallas Cowboys, who are now 5-5, on Thursday. McCoy has a chance to prove to everyone that the Redskins are still competitors, and locking up a divisional win on the road on Thanksgiving would be a huge boost to his confidence.