Sam Howell is about to show if he’s the long-term solution for the Washington Commanders in their unending search for a quarterback. The answer parallels whether head coach Ron Rivera and the entire front office remain after this season.
Oh, everyone can work hard and mean well, they really can as Rivera likes to reinforce after points. But well-meaning intentions don’t win games and Washington is readying to face its second straight Super Bowl contender hoping results differ from its last game.
“The scoreboard doesn't care,” said Howell, succinctly.
That’s right, the scoreboard doesn’t care Howell’s a young passer being asked too much. That offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy needs a grace period with a new team. That the defensive line seems to be playing more for sacks than team defense with its two ends seeking new contracts.
If the Philadelphia Eagles run over the Commanders on Sunday like the Buffalo Bills did in the 37-3 shellacking at FedEx Field in Week 3, then this season is trashed. Oh, there’s plenty of season left, but everyone has seen this story before and knows it seldom ends well.
Philadelphia (3-0) is a great team. Sure, the Commanders knocked off the undefeated Eagles (8-0) last season 32-21 on the road on Monday Night Football, but Rivera teams play their best in midseason so it’s too early for that. The Eagles-Commanders series has always been a weird one with unexpected outcomes and bizarre plays and failing fans over busted-up railings, but this Sunday looks like a straight-up reckoning.
If Washington gets off the canvas after a hellacious 15-round beating by the Bills, then respect comes with the 3-1 start. Otherwise, they’re simply a mediocre team that got lucky twice to beat two other mediocre teams and will drift through another .500 season like Rivera’s three previous years.
“What you will really be judged on is how you handle what happened today,” Rivera told players after the Bills loss. “Did we learn from it? Did we get better? Did we improve? Did we do the things that give ourselves a chance to win next week?”
Washington’s offensive line has been mediocre at best while Howell holds the ball too long looking for chances. The 2.5 seconds between snap and sack has been breached 19 times in three games and Bills defenders A.J. Espensa and Jordan Phillips said Buffalo focused on it for nine sacks.
“Yeah, [Howell] does hold it,” Phillips said. “That’s just growing pains as a rookie you know? A young quarterback, just forcing some stuff, just holding the ball trying to get the first down conversion and stuff like that, and they might not have been used to what they were going to see today from our rush.”
That said, Bieniemy can speed Howell’s education with more quick strike calls and a fullback for protection. Still, Howell will have good and bad days, especially after just four starts. The Commanders never considered benching Howell late against Buffalo because everyone’s fate is tied to the passer’s progress.
“It's football. It's going to happen. There aren't a lot of guys that are going to go out there and always have success,” Rivera said. “You got to learn and grow and you learn from the losses as well as you're learning from the wins. That's why we just got to stick to it.”
All Washington can do until finding the right quarterback is keep grinding. Maybe Howell is it. If not, the search falls to successors.