Washington head coach Ron Rivera has tried to tell anyone who’d listen the Commanders have found their quarterback. Every time Rivera speaks, regardless of the question, somehow Rivera turns it back around to quarterback Sam Howell.
Does Rivera believe this is true, or does his praise of Howell come from a selfish place? One quote from Rivera from training camp stands out.
“I don’t worry about that,” Rivera said about his future. “If we go 8-8-1 this year and he fires me, and next year they win the division and 40 of the 53 players we drafted, and it’s the same quarterback, I’m vindicated. Send me my Super Bowl ring. That’s the way I look at it. I want us to be right and to see this community have that excitement again.”
He didn’t mention Howell by name here, but it gave insight into his thinking. Rivera knows he’s coaching for his job. In fact, his fate has likely already been decided and was before the season, short of an improbable Super Bowl run.
For Rivera, it’s about legacy. And while he’s done some good things in Washington, you are what your record says you are. And his record in Washington is 26-33-1. He’s the head of all football operations; he picked the entire personnel department, including general manager Martin Mayhew. This is his roster. He drafted these players. He signed these players. And he extended some of the players he inherited.
Which turns us back to Howell. A fifth-round pick in the 2022 NFL draft, many wrote Howell off before he ever took a snap. Why? Because of the foolish narrative that he can’t succeed because he was a fifth-round pick.
No, we aren’t going to bring up Tom Brady here. But we will bring up the names of some other third-day quarterbacks, Kirk Cousins and Dak Prescott. Cousins and Prescott receive a lot of ridicule, much of it unwarranted. Both players are easily two of the NFL’s top 10-12 quarterbacks.
Cousins was a fourth-round pick in 2012, and Prescott was a fourth-round pick in 2016. Both were successful college quarterbacks at Power 5 schools.
Howell made his 12th NFL start on Sunday against the New York Giants. It didn’t go well. Howell was intercepted three times. It was the second time he struggled against the Giants this season.
Of course, social media quickly jumped on the narrative that Howell can’t play or Howell isn’t the answer. One prominent journalist who had been mysteriously quiet during some of Howell’s standout performances couldn’t wait to take a victory lap on Sunday.
Instead of many realizing this is a young quarterback with 12 NFL starts on his resume, some either want to anoint him or write him off after every performance. When, in truth, we should settle somewhere in between — for now.
Howell can play. Does he have flaws? Sure. Did Prescott and Cousins have flaws? Why don’t we judge first-round quarterbacks in the same manner?
Howell has shown more in 12 starts than Justin Fields, Mac Jones, Trey Lance, or Kenny Pickett. It’s the same for Brock Purdy. Remember how everyone wanted to write Purdy off after the first struggles of his NFL career?
Howell had issues with sacks early in the year. He’s cut those numbers down. He’s now thrown 12 interceptions. He’s also throwing the ball 50 times or more per game.
Yet, for some of the above quarterbacks, the excuses are abundant—coaching changes, lousy playcalling, etc. Howell doesn’t get the same benefit of doubt. Everyone is ready to say, “I told you so,” when he has a bad game.
Some of this is Rivera’s fault. The pressure he put on Howell to deflect the poor job he’s done recently wasn’t fair for the young quarterback. Some of it is Washington fans, so desperate for a franchise quarterback, want to prop up Howell after every performance. And to be fair to fans, they haven’t seen any passer like Howell since Cousins and, in some cases, before Cousins.
Not every game, especially on a poor team, should be a referendum on Howell’s future. What Howell has done with this current roster has been impressive. Most importantly, Howell has shown growth during the season. One or two bad starts shouldn’t impact the good.
Every time Howell struggles, the talk of the week is, “This next game is huge for Howell.” Perhaps that’s true. In reality, they’re all huge for Howell. He’s already proven he’ll be in the NFL for a long time. Right now, he’s trying to prove he’s Washington’s franchise quarterback.
Depending on where the Commanders pick in the 2024 NFL draft, a new regime may want to draft their own quarterback. That doesn’t mean Howell is a failure. Whether it’s in Washington or somewhere else, Howell will be starting somewhere next year unless he completely falls apart over the remaining six weeks.
That’s possible, but don’t count it.
