4 major observations from Sam Howell's performance vs. the Bears in Week 5

Sam Howell's rough first half

Even though Sam Howell was on the back foot right out of the gate, it came as a surprise to see the quarterback go through some complications over a rough first half. The signal-caller was taking what the Chicago Bears defense gave him en route to some nice early gains, but a deep ball to Dyami Brown fell agonizingly short and seemed to sap the Washington Commanders of any slight momentum they managed to generate.

Washington's offensive line was getting bullied at the line of scrimmage. This made it more difficult for Howell, but the former fifth-round selection won't want to watch the interception that came just before the two-minute warning again.

Howell cannot make mistakes like that, especially in the situation Washington found itself at the time. The Bears managed to score again, giving them an unbelievable 27-3 lead at the half-time interval.

The statistics don't usually tell the whole story. However, in this case, it was pretty much on the money for Howell and the Commanders, who weren't at the races whatsoever.

• 69 percent completion
• 71 passing yards
• 0 touchdowns
• 1 interception
• 1 sack against
• 3 rushing yards
• 50.5 passer rating (ESPN)

One solace for the Commanders is that things couldn't get much worse. But this was not a good look for anyone involved - Howell included - on primetime with Josh Harris and Magic Johnson watching intently.