Sam Howell expected to play for Commanders in Week 18
Former UNC standout quarterback Sam Howell is expected to get his first NFL action on Sunday, according to Ian Rapoport.
The Commanders made the decision to sit Carson Wentz in their season finale against Dallas after he threw three interceptions in a loss to Cleveland that helped end their playoff hopes. Howell has not seen the field at all during the regular season.
Rapoport said that it's unclear who will start between Howell and Taylor Heinicke, but he feels it's possible that Howell could see the field first. However, sources told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler that Heinicke will start and Howell will finish the game.
Howell's preseason performance had its ups and downs, but he showed improvement and promise game by game. His best outing was in the preseason finale against the Ravens. He played the whole game and threw for 280 yards and one touchdown while also rushing for a team-high 62 yards.
Howell finished his career at UNC as one of the program's all-time greats, throwing for the most passing yards in program history (10,283) in his three seasons. He still holds the single-season touchdown pass record (38) alongside Drake Maye who also reached 38 in 2022, and his 92 career passing touchdowns is the program's most by a landslide with Darian Durant's 68 touchdowns coming in second.
Will Howell be successful playing in his first regular season game as an NFL quarterback?
