Newly-named starter Howell in spotlight as Commanders face Ravens on TSN
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The Washington Commanders will get their first look at Sam Howell since naming him the Week 1 starting quarterback as they host the Baltimore Ravens in a preseason battle on Monday.
Howell, 22, was drafted 144th overall by the Commanders in 2022 and was named the starter to open the season on Friday, beating out veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett and third-year pivot Jake Fromm.
"He's basically met the challenge that we talked about, and that was seeing the growth and improvement from the OTAs and minicamp," Commanders head coach Ron Rivera told reporters on Friday. "Then [we] talked about going into training camp and continuing to grow and show us what he's capable of. We've been very pleased with it to the point where I decided [on Thursday] that we were going to name him the starter going into the regular season."
Howell made his NFL debut in Week 18 last season against the Dallas Cowboys, throwing for 169 yards with a touchdown and an interception in a 26-6 victory. He also completed nine passes for 77 yards with a touchdown in the Commanders' pre-season opening 17-15 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Aug. 11.
The 6-foot-1 pivot previously played three seasons with North Carolina, setting numerous school records including most passing yards (10,283), and passing touchdowns (92) during his NCAA career.
"I'm always confident in my abilities to just come out here and perform and do well for this football team,” Howell told reporters on Friday. "Throughout camp, every single day I've gotten better and more comfortable, and I feel like I'm in a really good place right now with the offence. I feel really good going out there every single day, and I feel good about my chances to go out there and execute."
The Commanders will have a tough task ahead of them, facing a Ravens team that's won 24 straight pre-season games and hasn't lost in the exhibition season since 2015. The Ravens have beaten the Commanders five times during that stretch.
Ravens star quarterback Lamar Jackson is not expected to appear in Monday's exhibition tilt, while last season's backup, Tyler Huntley, is expected to be out due to a hamstring injury.
"It would have been great if Tyler hadn't had [the injury] happen and could have played in this game; I would have loved that," said Ravens head coach John Harbaugh. "But we'll just make the decisions based on what we see, and, going forward, what we know. Tyler is going to be fine. We have to get it right, so that's good news. [In the] regular season, he should be fine by then. I'm not too worried about it.”
The backup and third-string quarterback positions have had a great importance to the Ravens each of the past two seasons with Jackson missing five regular-season games due to injury in each of the 2021 and 2022 seasons. He also missed the Ravens' 24-17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in the wild-card round of the playoffs in January.
Huntley started four of the five games Jackson missed last season, going 2-2 with 471 passing yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also threw for 226 yards with two touchdowns and one interception in the Ravens' loss in the wild-card round.
With both Jackson and Huntley out, Harbaugh and the Ravens will get a close look at the third-string quarterback battle between Josh Johnson and Anthony Brown.
Johnson, 37, appeared in two games with San Francisco 49ers last season, including the NFC Championship Game, throwing for 74 yards before leaving due to a concussion. He also appeared in the Ravens' pre-season 20-19 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Aug. 12, throwing for 45 yards with a touchdown.
Brown, 25, started one game last season for the Ravens, a 27-16 loss to the Bengals in Week 18, throwing for 286 yards with two interceptions. He also appeared in the Ravens' pre-season win over the Eagles, throwing for seven yards with an interception.