Commanders 2023 player grades through Week 2: Offense

How are the Washington Commanders players on offense grading out after an encouraging first two games of the 2023 campaign?

The Washington Commanders are 2-0 for the first time in – well, it has got to be since before Dan Snyder owned the team, right? Even if it isn’t, it doesn’t really matter. Nor does it matter that they have beaten two below-average teams in close games. They won. Good teams win.

Teams that are trying to get good after decades of bland mediocrity have to learn how to win those close games. I don’t mind that the Commanders have been in struggles right down to the end. In the long run, I think those kind of contests will actually benefit them more than good-looking blowouts.

Though it has only been two games, it’s never too early to assess the individual players. So let’s give out some player grades.

We’ll do offense today, which has come on a significant amount in a short space of time.

Sam Howell - Commanders QB

• Player Grade: B

Sam Howell has done everything one could reasonably expect as a virtually untested professional quarterback.

True, he needs better pocket awareness and needs to protect the ball. He has missed a couple of opportunities downfield. But those things will only improve with experience.

Howell can run and he can throw, and most importantly, he looks comfortable leading the team. Save for the seven minutes that Alex Smith was healthy, the former fifth-round pick is already the best quarterback this team has had since Kirk Cousins.

And the future is trending up.