Anthony Boone played QB at Duke in the early 2010s, and now, after an accident ended his hopes of a pro career, he works with up-and-coming QBs in the Charlotte area as a trainer for QB Country, a training and development company founded by former Ole Miss quarterback David Morris (who, like Boone, played under David Cutcliffe in college, and helped Boone train for the NFL Scouting Combine).
One of those QBs Boone has worked with is none other than former UNC star Sam Howell, who is now QB1 for the Commanders – and joining Kevin Sheehan on Friday, Boone allayed any fears fans may have about Howell’s makeup and ability.
“He can physically make all the throws and do all the things, and will do all the things necessary behind the scenes to succeed,” Boone said. “He’s a franchise guy, always been a professional and strictly football guy. Growing up, people thought he was a little awkward, but that’s because he only cared about football. He’ll make it hard for people in that building to not want to play for him.”
Boone has worked with Howell since his freshman year in high school, having met Howell because their mothers knew each other from working together – and like that relationship built one between Anthony and Sam, the now-Commanders QB knew he needed to do the same as soon as he found out who his next offensive coordinator was going to be.
“When Coach Bieniemy got hired, he was working out down here and said he wanted to go up there and meet coach and put presence in front of him,” Boone said. “That’s not to be a brown-noser, that’s just who he is as a person; he wanted to build that relationship and continue to grow the trust of the organization and the people around him. It’s not a sacrifice in his mind, because he wants to be one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play in the NFL.”
Even Boone admits you won’t see physical tools on tape that jump out at you, but ‘the thing he does all the time is win and compete at a high level,’ and maximizes what he does have in his toolbox.
“He’s a guy you can rely on and want to play for; he didn’t go out and party in high school, but if his teammates did and weren’t doing the right thing, they knew they could call him and he’d go pick them up,” Boone said. “That’s the kind of guy he is, and on the field, he’s kind of like Nikola Jokic – he won’t wow you by looking crazy athletic, but Jokic will drop 40 on you and you’re like ‘what happened.’ He’s going to prepare just as hard as anyone.”
When it comes to success on the field, Boone knows it’s all about repetition; Howell ‘may get away with some things early on,’ but as the league gets tape on him, he’ll have to make adjustments – and while there will be growing pains there, Boone is confident Howell will do what he needs to do and learn what he needs to learn from them.
“People will pick up on him, but basically right now, he’s in a position where the coaches are giving him the opportunity of a lifetime, one he won’t take for granted,” Boone said. “He knows there will be growing pains and he won’t do everything right, or he might see some things he’s not familiar with, but all that comes from reps. He got sparing reps here and there last year, but in OTAs, he’s the guy, so he’s getting the chance to make mistakes and learn from them. I’ve seen how he prepares, and he’s very confident in himself.”
So if all that is there, why did Howell struggle as a junior at UNC and fall all the way to the fifth round?
“I won’t make excuses, but that’s just kind of how the business goes sometimes,” Boone said. “If you really dive into Chapel Hill when he was there – he lost 75 percent of his offense between sophomore and junior years. No excuses, but you have five big players leave, your production is going to look a little different – but he was unselfishly putting his body on the line to make his team successful.”
Listen to Boone’s entire segment with Sheehan above!
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