Fan favorite Chris Cooley is back and he says he is in football shape. Expect Cooley to see a lot of action at tight end. (US Presswire)

Tight end Chris Cooley had no desire to play anywhere else. That’s why he’s now glad he rejected overtures from other teams.

The Redskins signed Cooley to replace injured Fred Davis (ruptured Achilles’ tendon/out for the season) on Monday.

“I was OK with not playing football this year,” Cooley said. “I thought about playing other places and didn’t like the idea of moving and making that change. … I feel very fortunate that I didn’t play somewhere else because this is the opportunity that I wanted. I’d be kicking myself if I was in another city right now and this came up.”

The Redskins likely will need Cooley to play a lot of minutes. Third-year Logan Paulsen set career-highs in Sunday's 27-23 loss to the New York Giants for catches (four) and yards (76). But he has become an excellent blocker and does have reliable hands. Second-year Niles Paul is still transitioning to tight end.

That gives Cooley a chance to help.

“If I get an opportunity to show everyone what I can do and show them that I’m healthy -- because I haven’t over the last two years -- it’ll give me an opportunity to prolong my career. ... I think I do have a chance to play a larger role in this offense.”

The other question is, what kind of shape is he in?

“I’ve maintained the strength I’ve had throughout most of my career,” he said. “It’s only six weeks since I was in training camp. I wasn’t at home doing squats and power cleans and listening to Rocky music, but I’m in good shape and I’ll step right back in and play.”

John Keim covers the Redskins for the Washington Examiner. Follow him on Twitter @CBSRedskins or@John_Keim.