As the Washington Commanders took the field for their week one home opener against the Arizona Cardinals, there were many questions on the offensive side of the football.

How would the offensive line hold up?

How would Sam Howell handle the difficulty of being the starting signal caller?

Well, the former North Carolina star would display poise in the pocket and exhibit an ‘ice in his veins’ mentality when it came to the mistakes made in their 20-16 win over the Cardinals.

Howell showed the ability to go through his progressions while standing tall in the pocket.

After an eight-play drive that ended in a punt the Burgundy and Gold defense quickly gave Howell and the offense another chance to put points on the board. On the second drive in the first quarter, the second-year pro used his legs to make an elite through to Brian Robinson for a touchdown that would give the Commanders the early lead.

What stood out most from Howell’s performance can’t be measured by statistics. After a rough second quarter that yielded three turnovers – two by Howell alone – that resulted in 10 points for the Cardinals. The Waynesville, NC native with 55 seconds left in the first half would show no fear, orchestrating a seven-play, 69-yard drive, to set his team up for a 30-yard field goal by Joey Slye that sent his team into the half only down by three points.

“Offensively, we could’ve played a lot better,” Howell said. “Turnovers, penalties, sacks – just a lot of things I think I can do better. Definitely a lot to clean up on the offensive side of the ball.”

The Commanders would go scoreless in the third quarter but with nine seconds left Washington’s defense forced a sack and a fumble that Daron Payne would recover giving the offense life on the Arizona 35-yard line. On the sixth play of the drive, Howell would respond by using his legs as the pocket broke down scoring a much-needed touchdown to give Washington the lead.

In the game, Howell showed he has the makings of a leader. A leader is Resilient when times are tough. Never allowing what was to be what is. However, he accepts the new reality, even if it’s less than his previous one. Howell doesn’t dwell on the losses and continues to fight and try to put together something that’s great.

That is why this week he is the Commanders’ Offensive Spotlight Player of the Week.

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