Howell was an impressive passer in his 6-26 slugfest over the Dallas Cowboys
Landover, MD– Sam Howell got his shot after weeks of waiting. Watching his peers take on roles in their respective offenses much earlier in the season, Howell seized his moment in a Week 18 versus the seemingly favorite Dallas Cowboys.
Taking the reins in the final week of his rookie career, it’d have been hard not to look at the other quarterbacks settle into their teams well before Howell. Malik Willis, Kenny Pickett, Desmond Ridder, and Bailey Zappe all got their starts well before Howell despite being in the same rookie class.
Howell pulled off one of the biggest upsets of Week 18 by defeating the 12-4 Dallas Cowboys 26-6 in a defensive slugfest. Eliminated from playoff contention, head coach Ron Rivera made the decision to start Howell after a disappointing year blew an opportunity to post a winning season despite an injury-riddled roster and a facet of allegations against Commanders’ owner Dan Snyder.
Howell, a 5th round selection by Washington in the 2022 NFL Draft out of the University of North Carolina, wasn’t meant to be the Commanders’ starting quarterback… well, not right away that is. Starting training camp buried underneath returning starter Taylor Heinicke and Carson Wentz– whom Washington acquired from the Colts in a trade early in 2022, the path to start appeared long and arduous.
Sam Howell’s first start took place in a macabre setting, a somber tone after being eliminated from playoff contention by way of the Commanders Week 17 loss to the Cleveland Browns and Green Bay’s victory over the Minnesota Vikings. Howell however, was elated, “I was excited, I’ve been working hard all year and I was kind of waiting for an opportunity to go out there.”
Starting Howell right away wasn’t originally on the ledger for Washington. Ron Rivera stated that the initial plan was to start Heinicke, and work Howell in against a generally stout Dallas defense. Rivera stated he ditched that plan after conversations with both coaches and players who had witnessed Howell make significant strides throughout practice leading up to the game and decided to give Sam the reins to a team whose quarterback room has been anything but steady.
Entering into Week 1, the Commanders had the triage of quarterbacks. Howell never challenged Heinicke for the starting role, and thus, the hierarchy was set. Wentz would start, Heinicke and Howell were meant to be his understudies. Howell was briefly elevated to the second-string role when Wentz went down with a thumb injury in Week 7, but even with that, his role has been minimal to a team that was expected to make the playoffs all throughout the year.
Yet, Howell’s teammates expressed a plethora of faith in the rookie quarterback, despite the organization’s notion of Howell being a developmental quarterback, one for down the road. Number one receiver Terry McLaurin, who was the 22-year old’s leading receiver on Sunday said, “I’ve seen some good things out of him this year… he made some throws where the ball comes off his arm and you’re just like ‘wow, that’s a nice ball.’ He has really good touch. And, I think he has a quiet confidence about him.”
That same quiet confidence earned him quite the distinguished resume during his career in Chapel Hill. Passing for over 10,283 yards throughout his 3 years at UNC with 92 touchdowns, it made sense why the Commanders showed so much faith in him. Despite being a fifth-round pick, Howell tore the Cowboys to shreds, leaving them without answers on defense for the most part.
MUST READ: The Aaron Rodgers Saga in Green Bay Might Be Over
For his first career start, Howell impressed– posting a 11-for-19 statline with 169 yards. Paired with a 57.9% completion rating, the former Tar Heel dazzled in his first start as a rookie. Despite throwing one red zone interception, the quarterback played great with long, sustained drives to keep the Dallas defense on the field and gasping for air.
Howell torched the depleted Dallas defense, ultimately winning 26-6 spoiling the Cowboys’ shot at a NFC East title and the possible 1st or 2nd seed in the NFC playoff race. We understand that Howell’s debut was far from the best rookie performance we’ve seen all year, especially with an interception tarnishing the numbers. But football is far more than simple statistics, Howell was poised and patient. He played with great confidence which should give the Commanders hope for the future.
“I’ll definitely say he’ll be a QB — I won’t give you a number yet,” Rivera said of Howell. “We’ll get through the evaluation process this week.”
While the ability to be suave stifles most young quarterbacks, Howell handled it like a proven veteran. While the digits may not jump off the page, Howell came in with a lot to prove, and he took care of business.
