NFL
By: Ryan Cooley
*All stats/grades are via PFF
The Commanders managed to gut out a tough victory in week one against the Cardinals. They will look to start 2-0 for the first time since 2011. The focal point of every game will be QB Sam Howell. On Sunday, there were some high highs and low lows. Of course, it is a tradition for fan bases to overreact after week one.
After going back and looking at every dropback by Howell, I was left feeling more optimistic than I did after Sunday’s game. Here is the good and the bad from Sam Howell in week one.
The Good For Sam Howell
Ability to Bounce Back
A common theme you hear about Howell is his ability to keep his composure. He doesn’t get down after a negative play. Here is Charles Leno talking about it:
https://x.com/Scott7news/status/1700992708192714914?s=20
Howell took a nasty hit to the head on the first play of the second drive. However, it didn’t affect him as the offense proceeded to march down the field and score a TD. Early in the 2nd quarter, a pass got tipped at the line and was intercepted. The next drive Howell had the offense moving down the field before Gibson fumbled in the redzone.
The best example of Howell’s ability to bounce back occurred after the strip sack. The fumble was as bad as it gets and resulted in a TD for Arizona. With 49 seconds left, Howell then led a 69-yard drive allowing Slye to kick a chip shot FG before halftime.
Accuracy
While Howell missed a few, he was accurate on most throws. His best one came on a pass to Cole Turner.
https://x.com/LetMualTellit/status/1701242143858131445?s=20
You couldn’t ask for better ball placement on a throw with such a tight window.
He had a few more that were impressive. One was a throw to Samuel on a corner route with 14 seconds left before halftime.
https://x.com/LetMualTellit/status/1701284114819600745?s=20
The safety attempts to jump and intercept the pass, but Howell puts it just enough outside where only Samuel could get it and allows him to gain an additional 13 yards after the catch. His touchdown pass was also notable. The end zone view shows he had to thread the needle between four defenders to get the ball to Robinson.
Going Through Progressions
This is a strange one because this will go under both good and bad. Howell holding the ball too long was an issue at times. However, there were also many plays where he quickly went through his progressions and made smart decisions.
https://x.com/BenStandig/status/1701378628578054534?s=20
Howell was not asked to do this in college. UNC’s offense was mainly one-read/RPO plays. Going through multiple progressions at the NFL level is an adjustment for every QB, especially one with such little experience doing it. It was far from perfect, but considering this was only Howell’s 2nd NFL game, I am very encouraged going forward.
The Bad For Sam Howell
Pocket Presence
One major concern I had of Howell when entering the league was his pressure to sack percentage. His 31.8% pressure-to-sack rate ranked 4th highest among 146 qualifying QBs his senior year and UNC. Sunday, he was sacked 6 times on 13 pressures (46.2%).
Contrary to popular belief, the Commanders offensive line performed well in pass protection.
https://x.com/Cooleystakes/status/1701275017705628029?s=20
Sam Howell has to do a better job of sensing pressure and not creating his own sacks. On one play in particular, Robinson clipped Charles’ leg while going out on a route. The defender was then able to bullrush his way to Howell with Charles falling back. He fails to see it coming and takes a sack head-on.
While Howell made many quick decisions, there were still a handful of dropbacks when he held onto the ball too long. His 2.91 seconds average time to throw was 9th slowest in week one. Getting rid of the ball sooner obviously means fewer sacks.
Eliminating the Ugly Plays
Every quarterback is going to have bad plays throughout a game. There is no such thing as a perfect game. While I was happy with the number of negative plays (or lack thereof) by Howell, he needs to make sure when he does make a mistake, it is the worst possible one you can make. We all know about the strip sack returned for a TD.
https://x.com/AZCardinals/status/1700939378934108566?s=20
There was another play in which Sam threw a pass to McLaurin running across the field on an over route. Terry had a step on the defender, but Howell threw it well behind him. If the defender saw the ball, it would’ve been intercepted. Luckily, it just hit the Cardinal’s player in the helmet and fell incomplete. If you’re going to miss on those types of throws, make sure it is at least in a spot where it can’t be intercepted.
Final Verdict
It is ridiculous for anyone to draw any type of conclusion on a player or team after one game. Especially a game in nasty weather conditions. Howell showed a lot of promising things against Arizona. There were also plenty of areas he needs to improve, which you would expect for a quarterback who has only started two games.
I am excited to see how Sam Howell responds Sunday against the Broncos who will likely be a tough matchup.
