Commanders News: Sam Howell, Chase Young, Kamren Curl and Dwayne Haskins

Commanders QB Sam Howell's mindset

Many have deemed it a foregone conclusion for some time, but the Washington Commanders made it official on Friday morning. Sam Howell is their starting quarterback for the 2023 season.

This represents a huge gamble from the Commanders and Ron Rivera. The head coach challenged Howell to earn the right to become QB1 this offseason and the former fifth-round pick duly delivered with gradual improvements and a level of self-assurance that was sorely lacking for Washington under center in 2022.

Howell was clearly thrilled with the announcement following a conversation with Rivera based on comments via the team's website. The North Carolina product is also aiming to put this newfound confidence to good use within Eric Bieneimy's dynamic system that plays to his strengths.

"I'm confident in the offense, I'm confident in my teammates, and I'm confident in the system. When I'm confident in all those types of things, I can just go out there and just be myself and play free and play fast. I feel like that's what I've been doing the past few weeks."

- Sam Howell via Commanders.com

There is a lot to like about the way Howell's applied himself this offseason. If the same trend continues when competitive games begin, the Commanders could be set to become one of the league's surprise packages when it's all said and done.