It seems like every week that Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell is playing for his future. Now, with 10 starts under his belt, Howell has a record of 5-5 as a starting quarterback and continues to show everyone that not only does he belong in the NFL, but he can be a legit franchise quarterback.
On Sunday, Howell completed 29 of 45 passes for 325 yards against Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots. That makes two consecutive games of passing for over 300 yards against two good defensive teams.
Through nine games this season, Howell has passed for over 2,400 yards and has gone over 300 yards three times. In two other games, Howell passed for 290 and 299 yards.
Yet, those on the outside continue to ask, “Has he done enough to be Washington’s franchise quarterback?”
It’s silly, honestly. In Washington, there always must be a debate. Howell is doing things no other Washington quarterback since Kirk Cousins did and, in some cases, long before Cousins. Whether Washington fans want to admit it or not, that Cousins guy turned out to be pretty good.
For his part, the always calm, cool and collected Howell doesn’t worry too much about it.
“I want to be the quarterback here for a really long time,” Howell said after Sunday’s win over the New England Patriots, per Ben Standig of The Athletic.
“How I’m going to get to that point is taking it one day at a time and doing everything that I can on a day-to-day basis. And that’s kind of the way I look at it. I never worry about the future. I take it one day at a time, and I try to give every single day everything I got. I give my teammates; I give the organization every single thing that I have every single day. That’s what I do, I’ll continue to try to do.”
That’s the perfect answer from Howell.
At this point, Howell is the guy for 2024, and that shouldn’t be up for debate. Every week, the goalposts are moved as in reference to Howell. If he plays well, there’s always a “but,” and if he struggles, there is a “see, we told you, he was a fifth-round pick, remember?”
Washington fans should sit back and enjoy the ride. While the season may not go as you initially hoped, the Commanders may have finally found their guy under center.