3 Commanders to watch for against the Cleveland Browns

2. Quarterback Sam Howell

Sam Howell is the guy that Washington really wants to win the quarterback job, on the grounds that he has a mutant throwing arm, clocking 59 mph according to the 2022 Combine radar guns.

Their general manager Martin Mayhew sounds like he has zero doubt that Howell is the next franchise quarterback. He beat Dallas last season, what more proof do you want?

However, head coach Ron Rivera tends to be more cautious about committing to Howell over the more experienced Jacoby Brissett. Hence Howell will probably have to play more than just a token appearance against the Browns, because he's going to have to get enough game reps to actually win the job this summer. It is not going to be just handed to him.

Howell is guy who many thought would be taken in an early round of the draft, but he took a draft day tumble to Round 5, probably because his junior year at North Carolina was not as impressive as his sophomore year.

As a sophomore, he threw for 3,586 yards and 68.1% completion percentage, 10.3 yards per attempt, and a 30/7 TD/INT ratio). In 2021, he ran for 828 yards (but nobody wants him to run in the NFL), while throwing for 3056, 62.5%, 24/9 TD/INT ratio, and 8.8 yards per attempt.

Should we believe the hype? After all, he's a fifth-round draft pick with just one NFL start. But he won that start, and he beat Dallas, so that's worth a lot in Washington. Still, everyone knows that franchise quarterbacks are drafted in the sixth round, not the fifth! We'll find out a little more on Friday.