by Dylan Sondike‘24

Through the first eight weeks of the NFL season, the Commanders have had another roller coaster of a season. With second-year year quarterback Sam Howell under center this year, the looming question of whether he is here for the long haul is on the minds of many fans. The Commanders currently sit at 3-5 with disappointing losses against some of the league’s weaker teams, suggesting that the Commanders will spend yet another offseason searching for a new quarterback.

As Howell pushes through his first full season starting in the NFL, he has certainly had to battle through significant adversity. Through the first eight games, Howell has been sacked 41 times, which is currently the most in the NFL and is on pace to break the NFL single-season record of 76 sacks taken. Despite a horrendous offensive line, Howell’s ongoing problem is holding onto the ball too long. There is always a learning curve for a new starter, but this issue should have been improved by now. Although Howell is young and inexperienced, there is a certain point where he needs to learn how to read defenses and scramble. All teams and quarterbacks face obstacles in their careers, but that cannot be a continuous excuse for simple mistakes.

Howell has also had accuracy problems most of the season. Howell threw 4 of his interceptions in one game against the Buffalo Bills. Through the first eight games, he is tied for second in the NFL for most interceptions with eight and is in the bottom half of the league for passer and QB rating. These numbers are why the Commanders have lost to weak opponents such as the New York Giants and the Chicago Bears, who have a combined four wins all season.

Howell has especially struggled early in games except for their most recent performance against the Philadelphia Eagles. Before this game, four of Howell’s interceptions have come in the first half of games. Heading into the week 8 game, he only threw for four touchdowns in the first half, which forced the team into difficult situations later in the game. However, in their most recent game, Howell and the team jumped out to a lead in the beginning with two early passing touchdowns, but a late interception and a couple of mistimed throws helped the Eagles hand the Commanders another one-score loss by a score of 38-31.

With tough opponents on the horizon including San Francisco, Miami, and Dallas, the Commanders organization must take a hard look at the QB situation in Washington. So far, Howell has struggled with turnovers, rather than simply throwing the football away, which has cost the team wins. A successful QB in the NFL can’t continue to make these errors. The Commanders must look to make another change as Howell isn’t the franchise quarterback they desperately hoped he would be.