Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell is on pace to enter the NFL record books this season, but it’s not something he wants to be in there for.
Howell has been sacked 34 times in his first six games. At his current pace, he’d finish the season with 96 sacks, obliterating the NFL record of 76 sacks set by David Carr in 2002.
Many have challenged the record, but it’s a tough one to break because quarterbacks who are hit that many times often get injured long before the season is over. Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, who is unlikely to play this weekend against Washington, injured his neck after ringing up 28 sacks in his first five games this season.
Commanders center Nick Gates has similar fears for Howell.
“It’s frustrating for us,” he said. “Trust me, we don’t like seeing it. But the only thing we can really control is us, so we’ve got to be better.”
While stats have historically been seen as a product of offensive line play, in recent seasons modern analytics have recast them as a reflection of the quarterback. The logic is that the quarterback sees the defense before the snap, and can adjust protection or throw the ball away if he senses danger.
Howell thus far has been unable to do that. He’s run into sacks and seemingly struggles to make the decision to throw the ball away, leading to more plays where he ends up on the ground.
“It’s tough, but it’s just something I’ve got to continue to get better at,” Howell said Wednesday. “I think that’s the next part of my game where I really need to show growth and development, and I feel good about my ability to do that.
“One thing I’m just trying to continue to get better at is if I do need to find an incompletion, just throw it at somebody’s feet, and find an incompletion, and just live to play another down.”
Howell’s propensity for taking a sack may be obscuring just how good the Commanders’ offense is. The group has been statistically productive so far in 2023. Of the team’s 15 offensive touchdowns, all but two of them came on drives where there was no sack.
“You look at a lot of those drives, going back and looking at them, when there is no sack, it’s pretty good,” coach Ron Rivera said.
He cautioned, though, that fans shouldn’t expect instant results. He said he and the other coaches knew what they signed up for when they tabbed Howell, who had only started one NFL game before this season, to be the quarterback.
“There’s a lot of bumps in the road, and we’ve got some young guys playing out there with him, so there’s some growth that needs to happen,” he said. Rivera added: “We get it. But just knowing it’s going to take a little bit of time.”
Howell may get a lot of practice at throwing the ball away on Sunday against the Giants.
Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale loves to blitz. Gates said it’s something he and the other offensive linemen will be ready for.
“That’s on me and Sam, both of us,” Gates said. “Just make sure we slide to the right protection, just give Sam time. It doesn’t matter if he holds on to the ball for 10 seconds or 2 seconds, we’ve got to protect as long as we can and keep him clean.”
Howell said the coaches, led by new offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, have done a good job coaching him in it, he just has to transfer those skills to the game.
That’s easier said than done, as taking too many sacks is an issue that plagued him during his third season at North Carolina, during college, as well.
As the season goes on, and Howell continues to demonstrate an ability to make throws that few NFL quarterbacks can make, it seems likely that cutting down on sacks would elevate his game to a level where he would be considered a starting-caliber quarterback in the league.
If not, and he ends up playing the whole season, Howell may end up with a different kind of fame, as the answer to a trivia question, the man who supplanted David Carr as the NFL’s sacked king.
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