With the NFL Draft less than two weeks away, all eyes are on quarterback-needy teams or teams that have a perceived quarterback need. One of those teams is the Washington Commanders, who have reportedly already decided on their signal-caller for the 2023 season, barring injury, of course.
According to a report from ESPNs’ John Keim, the Commanders have made it clear that they believe in second-year quarterback Sam Howell to take over the starting job in 2023. That would mean trading up for a quarterback or taking one with the 16th overall is presumably off the table.
Of course, the Commanders may find themselves in a position where Tennneseee’s Hendon Hooker is just too good of an option to pass up on come Day 2. While that wouldn’t necessarily affect Howell for the 2023 season, as Hooker recovers from an ACL injury, it wouldn’t exactly inspire confidence in the former North Carolina Tar Heel being the future of the quarterback position.
Keim reports that the current consensus is that the Commanders are leaning towards building around Howell and this year’s draft class will likely prove their feelings on that matter. Right now, ESPN’s Jordan Reid believes that Washington may be targeting Ohio State OT Dawand Jones in the first round. At the same time, players like Tennessee OT Darnell Wright and Notre Dame TE Michael Mayer could make sense for a Washington team looking to build around its signal-caller.
The NFL world reacted to the major Commanders’ quarterback news on social media:
This is smart actually – people making funny of this but this is the right move 🤷♂️ https://t.co/3pUuZyjQba
— Adam Lewis (@Admlewis) April 17, 2023
It will be interesting to see if this dyamic changes, should new ownership be in situ before the draft begins.#Commanders in a good spot to trade up if any of the top 4 QB's slide. I'm not sayin'. I'm just sayin'… https://t.co/CR2qTFrLR0
— Simon Carroll (@NFLDraftSi) April 16, 2023
Safe to stock up Howell for the season run up 🤔 https://t.co/SO6ts99ime
— Ocean State Sports Cards (@OSsportscards) April 16, 2023
This is exactly what the Texans did last year with Davis Mills. Idk if Ron Rivera would survive a tank season tho. https://t.co/gbc0AofwRN
— Bootman (@TheFiggyFig) April 16, 2023
Houston in two years with DeMeco Ryans leading one of the league’s best defenses: https://t.co/9c10pfjqjb
— John Crumpler (@JohnHCrumpler) April 16, 2023
Between this and the impending sale of the Commanders, it's hard to feel optimistic about Ron Rivera's tenure in DC. https://t.co/5PL3NH5MWJ
— Jason B. Hirschhorn (@by_JBH) April 16, 2023