The Washington Commanders barely missed out on the playoffs in 2022. They had some questionable quarterback play for most of the season with Carson Wentz and Taylor Heinicke. There was a bright spot at the end when rookie Sam Howell got an opportunity to lead the team. He was a late-round pick that was forgotten about after a subpar (by his standards) final season at the University of North Carolina.
Will Sam Howell Be QB1 for the Washington Commanders in 2023?
In college, overall, Howell threw for 10,283 yards and 92 touchdowns with 23 interceptions. He also added 1,009 yards rushing with 17 touchdowns and even had four catches and scored two receiving touchdowns. He was very athletic, and it was on full display throughout his three-year collegiate career. In 2021, the team did not play as well as they had in 2019 or 2020, but it certainly was no fault of Howell’s. In 2020, the team lost a number of players to the NFL draft including most, if not all, of his biggest weapons on offense. This is hard to come back from and be as good or even better than the previous season. Howell had to learn the strengths and weaknesses of all the new players around him. He ended up rushing the ball a lot more and throwing a lot less in 2021. Of his 1,009 yards rushing and 17 touchdowns rushing his junior year totaled 828 yards rushing and 11 of those touchdowns.
NFL Draft
For some unknown reason, his draft stock took a huge hit. People had completely forgotten about him heading into the draft and put Malik Willis and Desmond Ridder ahead of him on their draft boards. Howell, magically, fell all the way to the fifth round before the Washington Commanders selected him and ended his freefall. It’s hard to believe, that the pre-season favorite to be the number one pick in 2021 had been Howell. Of course, when you are drafted that late, the likelihood of starting or even seeing the field as a rookie is pretty small. However, he did have an opportunity and played better than most expected.
2023 Season
Howell, at this point, has received both praise and the nod as the QB1 entering the offseason, though it will need to be earned. The Commanders new offensive coordinator, Eric Bienemy even had this to say about him, “The kid is a dynamic football player,” Bieniemy told reporters last week. “He can make throws from different platforms. You can tell he has a baseball background. The thing that got me fired up was when he ran in on that touchdown, he flexed.” That’s some pretty high praise from someone who has spent the last several seasons working with Patrick Mahomes. This could be the break that Howell needs to show everyone he belongs in the NFL. With any luck, he will come into training camp prepared for the challenge. It would be a great story to see this forgotten-about quarterback prospect lead this proud franchise back to the playoffs in 2023 as a first-year starter.
Main Photo: Brad Mills – USA TODAY Sports
