Commanders' Eric Bieniemy Loving Sam Howell's 'Progression' Throughout Preseason
There is little not to be happy with if you are a Washington Commanders fan right now. The new ownership has given the franchise a new lease on life, and maybe, just maybe, you have a franchise quarterback at last.
Sam Howell was named the starting quarterback after two joint practices against the Baltimore Ravens. Howell then went out and produced a superb first half against the Ravens in the second preseason game on Washington's schedule.
The second-year quarterback out of North Carolina completed 19 of his 25 passes for 187 yards and two touchdowns.
Coach Eric Bieniemy has loved Howell's improvement throughout the offseason and attributed his success to simply getting consistent reps.
“You know what I thought Sam’s progression has been right where you would like it to be," Bieniemy said. "I thought he's just stayed the course, you know, he's learned a lot just being out there each and every day."
Being the starting quarterback of an NFL team is one thing, it's another to do it when you only have one regular season game to your name.
But Howell hasn't let that deter him, as he beat out veteran Jacoby Brissett for the starting role.
For Bieniemy, Howell's ability in practice to see a problem in his game, diagnose it, and then fix it has been something he has loved seeing.
"The thing I also like is that Sam, he auto-corrects, and you love that about him, and he takes it personal. He takes work home, and he loves to talk through all the little detailed nuances of the game. So, I think he's right where he needs to be. He's done a heck of a job. I thought he did a good job as well in the practices, and he did a heck of a job in the game this past, whenever it was just a day or two ago.”
While there haven't been real NFL bullets flying yet, Howell's performances across the two preseason games should ease any nerves around his leading this franchise into a new dawn.
He has completed 28 of his 37 passes for 265 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions in two games. Of course, that counts for nothing come Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals, but we can see the potential.
Commanders fans have a lot to be bullish about heading into the new season, and the play of Howell might just be the icing on top of a cake that took a long time to bake.
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