Think of your worst moment in public; how did you respond?
Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell led his team to FedEx Field Sunday with a 2-0 record to face the Buffalo Bills.
What followed was lousy, horrendous, awful. Sam Howell looked completely in over his head, clueless.
We’ve all looked lousy and awful in various avenues in life. Few of us, however, will ever be on anything close to such a huge stage for the public to observe.
What is our natural reaction? To blame someone else, of course. Just watch politicians. They create their own policies, reject those of the past administration, make their own choices, and select their own appointments. And then, they blame the other side when their own program does not get the job done.
Sam Howell Sunday attempted to throw 38 passes. He completed 19 of the 29 passes he actually threw. Four of his passes landed in the hands of Buffalo Bills defenders. He was also sacked nine dreadful times. He concluded the game with a passer rating of 41.5. Remember how he often struggled against the Cardinals? Well, in that game, his passer rating was much higher at 77.6. 41.5 against Buffalo is terrible!
So, how did Howell respond when he appeared before the media Wednesday?
“I don’t make any excuses for myself. I expect to play much better than I played Sunday. My teammates and this organization deserve for me to play better.”
Howell might have only appeared in four NFL games thus far, but we can easily recall some former Washington quarterbacks who had played in many more games who did not possess the courage, the manhood to respond as Howell did Wednesday.
Howell even added, “I can’t make the excuse I’m young. The team we’re playing doesn’t care; the scoreboard doesn’t care.”
Sure, Howell has a long way to go in reading defenses and getting rid of the ball. But he sure took a step forward Wednesday, winning the respect of his teammates and coaches.