The Washington Commanders ended Sam Howell’s free fall in this weekend’s NFL draft with the 144th overall pick. The former North Carolina quarterback anxiously went through four rounds without having his name called.
Having the first selection in the fifth round, Howell was too good of a choice to pass up for Washington. The Commanders weren’t looking for a quarterback, especially not one as highly graded as Howell.
They already have their starting quarterback, Carson Wentz, who Washington acquired in a trade this off-season from the Indianapolis Colts. So before making the pick of Howell, Commanders head coach Ron Rivera said he spoke to Wentz to give him the heads up that the team was drafting another QB.
“I had an opportunity to talk with Carson [Wentz] before we made the pick,” Rivera told reporters, per NBC Sports Washington. “I wanted to make sure he understood that this is just all about developing a young guy more than anything else.”
Wentz is a former No. 2 overall pick back in the 2016 draft. He had an MVP-caliber season in 2017 before tearing his ACL and watching his Philadelphia Eagles win the Super Bowl with his replacement Nick Foles.
Since then, Wentz has struggled to rekindle that magic of their early part of 2017. Now, he is on his third team in three years. Following the Eagles’ Super Bowl run without him, Wentz has seemingly struggled with competition in the same QB room as him.
First with Foles, the Super Bowl Bowl LII MVP, and then in 2020 with a rookie Jalen Hurts lingering over his shoulder. His one year run in Indianapolis ended in disaster. That led to him being run out of town by Colts owner Jim Irsay to Washington.
The perception is Wentz’s confidence can be easily rattled with a threat in the QB room. Howell could present that at least with fans and some media. Again, many draft pundits thought Howell would’ve been drafted at least two rounds earlier. His talent made him a preseason choice to go No. 1 overall before the 2021 season.
But, Rivera contends Howell’s selection is just about the development of a third QB.
“[Carson] is our number one going forward and he appreciated the fact that I gave him the heads up,” Rivera continued. “He’s actually pretty excited because he’s heard a lot of good things about Sam”
Rivera added Taylor Heinicke, the Commanders primary starting QB last year, will be the backup. Howell will develop as the third quarterback.
“There’s no hurry to force him out there,” Rivera said of Howell.
