Commanders QB Watch: Sam Howell Growth Most Evident Since Beginning of OTAs

The second-year quarterback for the Washington Commanders is not just stepping into his starting role, he's taking charge of it, according to coach Ron Rivera.

It's no secret Washington Commanders coach Ron Rivera liked quarterback Sam Howell coming out of North Carolina last year. 

There's even widespread speculation that the Commanders had a much higher draft grade on Howell than his fifth-round selection would suggest. 

And we submit that had it not been for the presence of veteran quarterback Carson Wentz on the roster and the need to minimize appearance his job wasn't solidified, Howell would've likely not left Day 2 of the 2022 NFL Draft without knowing his future address.

But that's the past, and we're in the here and now - where Howell is the starting quarterback in Washington, and his confidence is growing daily according to Rivera. 

He knows this, because he hears it for himself, via a tiny microphone the team attaches to him ahead of practice.

“The difference I’m seeing really is from when he first got started when we began OTAs to where he is now," says Rivera. "The way he handles things, his command in terms of the things that he’s doing. One of the things that we’re doing, it’s something we had done way back when I was in Chicago, but we mic Sam up, so we can listen to him. The way he’s handling the huddle calls, how he’s handling things at the line of scrimmage, it’s given us a lot of insight into that…It’s real interesting to watch the way you can see him stepping into the huddle. He’s taking charge, taking command and it’s one of the things that when you listen to Eric…he’ll tell the quarterback, Hey, you gotta take charge. You’re starting to see that.”

This may be a simplistic way of putting it, but it sounds similar to the theory that if you're nervous about public speaking simply record yourself, listen to the tape, and critique and improve your performance until you're confident enough to do it for real.

Only in Howell's case, he has a room full of master speakers helping him fine-tune his mastery of this craft 

“We’ve only done it a couple of times, but you see the growth already and for me, it was pretty good," Rivera continued. "I was watching it this morning. A couple things that really stood out to me was really his confidence level in terms of calling the huddle, breaking the huddle, getting to the line of scrimmage, making his calls, and then operating the offense.”

The more confident Howell gets the better the Commanders' offense will perform, or at least the higher the potential will get. 

In our second opportunity to watch Howell lead Washington's offense in practice he was consistently coached up by assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy in the style that's endeared him to the crowd of onlookers used to a more reserved method of instruction. 

Howell himself said after the practice that he appreciates Bieniemy's style. 

"He's just coaching," Howell says. "I go back there almost always after we finish a run of plays and we kind of just talk through the plays...I just love being coached and I love that he does that type of stuff because I always want feedback. And I tell him that all the time to coach me hard. I want to be coached hard. So it's been fun."

Fans attending OTA practices have had fun watching Howell through pinpoint passes to receivers like Zion Bowens on Wednesday who was running with a defender tight on his hip but able to complete the catch because of a perfectly placed pass.

Those same fans don't likely enjoy seeing Howell follow that up with a dangerous pass into double coverage that was nearly intercepted, even if he was targeting team captain and star receiver Terry McLaurin. 

But they then loved the sideline dime Howell dropped to tight end Curtis Hodges shortly after. 

That's been the path for Howell thus far as the starting quarterback in Washington. Some dazzling plays show you how far he can go, and some lesser ones remind you he's still very early in his development. 

But Commanders coach Rivera is going to keep listening in to make sure his quarterback is growing, Bieniemy is going to keep coaching him hard, and Howell is going to keep loving every minute of it.

Find David Harrison on the Locked On Commanders podcast or text him directly at (202) 760-2188.

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