LANDOVER, Md. -- Nobody could point to anything Kirk Cousins said in the huddle on the last drive that was out of the ordinary. There was no different look, no vow to drive the Washington Redskins down the field to a win. Instead, it was the same quarterback who entered the huddle on every other drive.

And that’s what the Redskins liked. Cousins was not overwhelmed by the moment. Instead, he treated it the same as he did other drives. Deliver encouragement, call the play, get the ball out, move the chains.

"Stay in the moment, stay present," Cousins said.

A consistent approach -- and it’s one that worked. Mind you, this game-winning drive in the Redskins' 23-20 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles was not on Cousins alone. No way. It started with three run plays totaling 25 yards to generate momentum and get the Redskins out to the 35-yard line. Pierre Garcon came through with two big-boy catches when he was crunched immediately after both: on third-and-6 for 14 yards and on the 4-yard touchdown.

Still, Cousins led the drive. You can credit many factors, but his ability to handle the situation mattered greatly.

“He was money on that drive,” Redskins linebacker Ryan Kerrigan said.

Every week there’s a referendum on Cousins’ game, partly because of what he hasn’t done and partly because of the man he replaced (Robert Griffin III). If he has a bad game, it’s not because he’s a young quarterback who has now made 13 career starts, it’s because this is just who he is. And, really, all we know this year is that he’s been good enough to deliver two wins. It’s one thing to play well in a week. It’s another to do it in consecutive weeks. That’s what Cousins still must prove.

But to lead a team 90 yards on an 18-play drive? That’s different. Cousins completed 31 of 46 passes for 290 yards and a touchdown. He was 6-of-10 for 44 yards and a touchdown on the final series.

“It builds confidence in him, but for us to see him execute a drive like that,” Redskins left tackle Trent Williams said, “and to stay in that pocket and deliver those balls and to keep cool, calm and collected in the huddle and not waver in confidence, not waver in nerves, you can’t say enough about what type of drive he had. We did lean on him. We had to protect him, but he got the ball out to the right people and he moved the ball down the field. All credit to Kirk.”

Cousins just had to do his job, nothing more. That meant throwing on time or eluding the rush. That meant recognizing protections that would not have worked. Like on the touchdown throw: Cousins changed the protection because he saw the Eagles bringing a cover-zero blitz.

“Last week I missed a touchdown pass because I didn’t adjust the protection,” Cousins said. “This week I did adjust the protection and we got the touchdown. There are things like that, that happen that aren’t ability. It’s experience. It’s learning from failure. The key is to not let these mistakes repeat themselves too much.”

Teammates see that he’s learning lessons. It definitely paid off at times Sunday. Not that Cousins was perfect, but he didn’t throw an interception and he was sacked just once in 46 pass attempts.

“He’s really good about understanding not only the passing concepts, but the protection concepts, too,” Redskins center Kory Lichtensteiger said. “If you don’t have it [aligned] the right way or if our rules take us somewhere, but he sees something else happening on the other side, he’s really good at calling audibles and getting us going in the right direction.”

Whether Cousins ultimately keeps the job long-term remains to be seen. But he has definitely matured and you can see it in his movement in the pocket Sunday compared to when he faced the Eagles last season. Then, even though he threw for 427 yards, Cousins looked panicked in various situations. His demeanor changed throughout the day. Not Sunday.

“He was the same guy,” Lichtensteiger said. “Very positive, encouraging. At the same time he had a very businesslike attitude. He knew he was going to get it done. That’s his mentality every time he steps out there. I didn’t feel there was any difference in the confidence on the first drive through the last drive. He was the same guy, very determined.”

The season is still young, but other players needed to see what Cousins did in that moment. They need to know what they have. Again, there's a long way to go, but it helped build confidence. Now, he must add another layer to that wall of confidence next week for this game to not be an aberration.

“Anytime your quarterback wins the game like that you’re like, ‘This guy is pretty special,’" Redskins defensive lineman Chris Baker said.

The Redskins are only 2-2 and it was just the first time Cousins had led a win in this manner. Perception could swing the other way if he has a bad outing next week. But Cousins showed growth and the Redskins benefited. Cousins and teammates were buoyant in the locker room afterward; as he cut the tape off his ankles he was pumped about the adjustment he had made, thrilled that he learned a lesson. It’s another step in his development. We’ll see where the next one leads.