For the second consecutive week, Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera benched second-year quarterback Sam Howell in Sunday’s 30-28 loss to the New York Jets.
Howell completed only six of 22 passes for 56 yards with two interceptions in Sunday’s loss. In fairness to Howell, he didn’t have a lot of help from his teammates. One interception resulted from a dropped pass, while the other occurred when his receiver slipped on the route.
But to say Howell didn’t play a significant role in Washington’s offensive struggles would be naive. He doesn’t look like the same player he was in the first 10 weeks. During that time, he had some stinkers but showed an impressive ability to bounce back.
That seems so long ago. Offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy continued to praise Howell last week but felt like he was pressing, something which Rivera agreed with on Sunday.
“I did, and you know it was tough,” Rivera said. “We didn’t help him early; we dropped a couple [of] balls that we probably should have caught, and then that’s tough. Your confidence can sometimes get shaken, and that’s what I started to feel in the second half, and I was really concerned and that’s why I made the decision I did.”
To make matters worse for Howell was Jacoby Brissett’s play in relief. The veteran signal-caller relieved Howell last week and led the Commanders on two touchdown drives. On Sunday, Brissett entered in the third quarter and led Washington to 21 straight points, giving the Commanders a 28-27 lead late in the fourth quarter.
While Washington would eventually lose, Brissett’s play showed how the offense can look when operated efficiently.
Rivera didn’t hesitate to say Howell remained Washington’s starting quarterback after last week’s loss to the Rams.
He didn’t offer the same assurances after Sunday’s loss.
Well, we’re going to put everything in and evaluate everything,” Rivera said when asked if Brissett would start next week. “We’ll let you know. We’ll come to the conclusion very early in the week.”
That answer tells you that the Commanders will stick with Brissett over the final two games against the 49ers and Cowboys.