It’s been a wild week for the Washington Commanders. After taking the Philadelphia Eagles to the brink for the second time in five games — and losing — Washington shifted its focus to the NFL trade deadline.
The Commanders traded starting defensive ends Montez Sweat and Chase Young ahead of Tuesday’s deadline. While one was almost expected to be traded, moving both sent shockwaves around the NFL. Suddenly, there was talk that new owner Josh Harris was having a fire sale, dealing veterans on expiring contracts for draft picks.
It’s actually good business and something the franchise never did under former owner Daniel Snyder.
What did Washington players think? As expected, their teammates immediately noticed the locker room without Sweat and Young — two popular players with big personalities in the locker room.
But every player understands, first and foremost, that the NFL is a business.
What did quarterback Sam Howell think?
“It’s always tough,” Howell said. “Two great teammates, two great players. Obviously, I didn’t have anything to do as far as the decision-making of the trades, but they did whatever they felt was best for the team and as far as the future goes. I hate to lose those two guys. Obviously, tremendous, tremendous players, but they’re just great guys, great guys in the locker room. They’re fun to be around, and they work really hard. I wish those guys well, and I want nothing for [but] the best of them.”
One thing Howell made clear, as did head coach Ron Rivera and others, is that the trades, while helping the future of the franchise, weren’t a sign of surrender on the current season.
“We still have a lot of football left this year, and we’re not just fully set on rebuilding,” Howell said. “We’re trying to win right now, and we feel like we have the players to do that. We’re going to do everything it takes to try to win each and every game that we play.”
That’s a polished answer from the starting quarterback, who has nine NFL starts under his belt.
The 3-5 Commanders will look to get back on track Sunday against the 2-6 New England Patriots.