Washington Commanders' Ron Rivera Praises 'Very Efficient' Sam Howell in Atlanta Falcons Win
The Washington Commanders snapped their three-game losing streak by defeating the Atlanta Falcons 24-16 as Sam Howell again impressed.
While the game won't win any awards for aesthetics, the Commanders manged to do the only thing that mattered - win.
While Howell didn't have his best game statistically, as he completed 14 of 23 passes for just 151 yards, he did throw three touchdowns in the win.
But what did head coach Ron Rivera think of his quarterback's game?
“Oh, I thought Sam was very efficient," Rivera said. "That's probably the best way to put the way he played. His decision-making was for the most part, really good. There was a couple times, obviously, I'd like to see him get the ball out his hands a little bit quicker and not take the hits or sacks that he did. His quarterback rating was over a hundred, which was very good because his decision-making was good. He protected the football, delivered some very catchable balls. I thought he handled those very well.”
With the win, the Commanders now move to 3-3 on the season as they look to get back on track. After winning their opening two games of the season, the three-game skid set them back.
Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell
Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
But now, after defeating the Falcons, Washington is again in a good mood.
Up next is the New York Giants in what is a very winnable game for Rivera's team, but despite Washington getting back on the winner's list and with a Giants team that sits at 1-5, Rivera is keeping his team fully focused.
“I think the biggest thing [that] is important is really maintaining the focus of one at a time," Rivera said. "We're 3-3. We have an opportunity to go to 4-3, if we go out and play the football we're capable of and win a football game against the Giants. To get ahead of that, I don't want to do that. I want to make sure we stay focused on the one game at a time in town. Just understand it's the most important game we're going to play all year. Why? Because this is the game we will play, so we're going to keep that focus.”
The NFC East race is tightening up with the Philadelphia Eagles losing to the New York Jets and the Dallas Cowboys still recovering from its loss to San Francisco, so there could be a chance for the Commanders to close the gap.
Of course, Rivera isn't interested in looking too far ahead right now. His team got the win it needed, and now it's time to build on that - starting with the Giants.
