Commanders Training Camp Notebook: Sam Howell Shines and Secondary Rotates

Our look at Washington Commanders training camp practice No. 1 with a focus on quarterback Sam Howell and the ever-evolving secondary group.

ASHBURN, Va. -- The Washington Commanders held their first training camp practice of the new season on Wednesday and Commander Country was on ground to take in all the sights and sounds of the day.

As we get a new batch of Commanders training camp notebooks going this season we're doing it a little bit differently this year with a daily play of the day, camp battle, or question update, and a regular Sam Howell watch as the second-year quarterback attempts to fight off veteran Jacoby Brissett.

Play of the Day

The best play of the day came early in the first 7-on-7 drill for quarterback Sam Howell and the starters. 

Running back Antonio Gibson started lined up outside and motioned into the backfield next to Howell in shotgun before running a wheel route down the sideline.

Gibson won the route easily and got behind the linebacker in coverage making it appear to be an easy throw and catch for what would have counted as an impressive explosive play for Washington's offense.

(Defensive) Back and Forth

We came into training camp really curious about the usage of players in the secondary, and while we didn't get solidified answers on the first day we did get further confidence in the take that the group is incredibly talented.

Kendall Fuller appears to be locked in as an outside cornerback but beyond that there are a lot of questions. 

On the first day of practice, we saw cornerbacks Benjamin St-Juste and Emmanuel Forbes lineup across the formation and at times were even the two perimeter corners on the field with Fuller on the sideline.

Additionally, second-year safety Percy Butler was getting first-team reps in situations where Kamren Curl often dropped down into the Buffalo Nickel position.

Clearly defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio is still figuring out the right combination of defensive back usage, and it's something we look forward to monitoring all preseason long.

Howell Watch

The second-year quarterback started hot, throwing darts with his first-team receivers and connecting on all four of his passes in the first 11-on-11 drill of the day. 

In all, Howell completed eight of his thirteen passes with multiple head-smart throwaways while under pressure - even if it is practice pressure.

Perhaps the best part of his day was the lack of interceptions while backup Jacoby Brissett threw one and third-string quarterback Jake Fromm threw three.

Ball security is most important for any quarterback, so seeing Howell miss smart when he did is as good a first day as any.

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

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