Commanders' Sam Howell's Struggles Continue in Brutal First Half vs. Jets

Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell's recent struggles continued in the first half against the New York Jets.

The Washington Commanders have nothing to play for but pride in their final three games, but it appears that even playing for pride is hard.

Against the New York Jets, the Commanders came out flat and found themselves down 17-0 midway through the first quarter as Sam Howell's struggles continued.

Howell was intercepted on Washington's first drive as he rolled out and threw an accurate pass to tight end Logan Thomas, only for it to bounce off his hands and to a Jets defender for the pick.

We'll take that! @Iwill_suceed20 with the INT!#WASvsNYJ on CBS pic.twitter.com/qmlMkiKD9F

— New York Jets (@nyjets) December 24, 2023

Things only got worse for Howell and the offense as on their next possession, their punt was blocked, which set the Jets up on Washington's nine-yard line. They would punch it in for a touchdown as Trevor Siemian would find Breech Hall with an eight-yard pass to put New York up two scores.

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Washington's next offensive drive lasted just five plays and only mustered two yards as again, it was forced to punt. The Jets then heaped more misery on the Commanders as Hall broke free for a 36-yard touchdown run to drive a stake through the heart of Washington to go up 17-0.

Howell, who was benched last week for Jacoby Brissett, at one stage completed just one of his nine passes for 16 yards and an interception as things have gone dramatically south for the young quarterback.

Oh, and all of this happened in the first quarter too.

WOW! Jets Overwhelm Commanders, Take Big Lead

After head coach Ron Rivera wanted to see consistency from Howell, the second-year quarterback has picked up where he left off last week as the rigors of NFL football seem to have caught up with him.

With Howell struggling last week vs. the Los Angeles Rams, he was eventually benched for Brissett, and given how the first half has gone, will Rivera and offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy look to "protect" their young quarterback for the second consecutive week?