Commanders News: Sam Howell, stadium, new owners and Chase Young

Commanders QB Sam Howell ranked

We’ll find out soon enough how much the Washington Commanders genuinely believe in Sam Howell. The talk has been positive throughout the offseason, but that will count for nothing if those in power decide to draft another promising prospect at some stage during the 2023 NFL Draft.

While that appears unlikely, it cannot be dismissed. Certainly not if Eric Bieniemy feels like a better option could be there for the taking that fits within his creative offensive scheme.

For now, Howell has a legitimate chance of winning the starting job in 2023. He’ll have to earn it with Jacoby Brissett breathing down his neck, which promises to be a fascinating training camp battle between the two this summer.

Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports highlighted how much work Howell has to do in his recent quarterback rankings for the AFC and NFC after Aaron Rodgers was finally traded to the New York Jets. The former fifth-round pick out of North Carolina sat at No. 14 out of 16 in the conference, with only Baker Mayfield and Desmond Ridder below him in the pecking order.

This is likely down to Howell’s inexperience rather than talent. But nobody could say with any great confidence how the signal-caller is going to perform over a prolonged period based on the extremely limited sample size to date.

Howell has a huge opportunity this offseason. Hopefully, he can grasp it with both hands and finally bring the good times back to Washington.