When the Washington Commanders drafted Sam Howell in round five of the 2022 NFL Draft, many thought the former North Carolina standout would be relegated to backup status on a team that needed a starting caliber signal caller.
Howell didn’t play until Week 18 in the season finale against the Dallas Cowboys.
The second-year pro would win that game and garner the attention of fans, teammates, and coaches as a possible starter this year.
During the offseason, he did everything that was asked of him by coach Ron Rivera, as well as new offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy. Throughout training camp and preseason Howell displayed a poise well beyond his 23 years.
He entered the regular season as an unknown player who had a big arm, but what he has shown during the first two games in Washington’s surprising 2-0 start is his leadership qualities. He also possesses the ability to look forward and not dwell on the previous play or game. He tries to improve each week. Those traits are serving Howell well as Washington prepares for a tough Week 3 matchup with the Buffalo Bills.
“I just think I played more decisive, and I think my decision-making overall was better,” Howell said after Washington’s 35-33 win over Denver. “I was just playing more decisive and getting the ball out on time, so I felt like I was in good rhythm.”
This season Howell has outperformed several first-year starters who have come into the league with greater fanfare. Technically a second-year pro, Howell is basically playing a rookie campaign under center after having one start last season and two so far this year.
On the season he has produced solid numbers of 501 yards, three passing touchdowns, and a rushing touchdown to go with a 65.7 completion percentage. Last week against Denver he was under duress for a large portion of the game but helped the Commanders battle back from an 18-point deficit to secure the win.
One thing that could help speed up Howell’s production and vision even further for defensive schemes and packages is his daily practices against his teams’ stout defense and pass rush. He elaborated with team media about how the Commanders’ defensive line has made him better:
“We have one of if not the best D-line in the NFL, and those guys are really good and it makes it tough on our O-line and tough on me,” Howell expounded. “I have to really be on time with my feet and my eyes and my decision making and when something’s not there, I got to find my check down really fast or just find an incompletion. That’s obviously an area of my game where I’m still trying to improve on. Just trying to find those incompletions and not taking sacks, especially in field goal range. I put [Kicker] Joey [Slye] in a hard spot a couple of times in the game. But yeah, going against our defense has definitely prepared us for what we go for on Sundays.”
Those preparations should help this Sunday against a tough Bills defense that has been one of the NFL’s best over the past few seasons.
If Howell can continue his maturation as a starting signal caller Washington might have themselves a steal from the fifth-round.