When Pro Football Focus (PFF) released their rankings of the NFL starting quarterbacks last week, the world stopped and took notice. Okay, not really, but if you didn’t know, last week PFF released their offseason thoughts on quarterbacks for the upcoming season. How did the Washington Commanders’ Sam Howell do?
Not particularly well.
Where Did Howell Rank?
27th
He ranked 27th.
While that evaluation of Howell may surprise some fans, it’s not really that shocking given that he has a sum total of one career start.
However, at 27th, he is ranked behind Carolina Panthers rookie Bryce Young, who hasn’t even taken an NFL snap yet.
To some that may seem a little misplaced. Even if Young was the first overall pick in the draft.
Why Was Howell Ranked 27th?
The rationale for ranking Howell at 27th stems from his limited playing time. He’s played one NFL game and had some preseason success against other teams’ third and fourth string defenses.
Admittedly, that isn’t a lot to go on.
PFF wrote:
Another almost total gamble, Howell was given one game late last season to audition for the starting job and performed well in it. He completed 11 of 19 passes for 168 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 35 yards and another score. Howell was seen as a legitimate prospect before sliding all the way to the fifth round of the 2022 draft, but expecting anything above this would be wildly optimistic.
Given his draft position in the fifth round (144th overall), and the complete lack of proven quarterbacks taken that late, it’s not hard to understand PFF’s tempered expectations for the Commanders quarterback.
Howell played three seasons as the starter at the University of North Carolina. Some say that despite not being drafted until Day Three, the Commanders had him ranked as their top quarterback prospect for 2022.
He didn’t just set a few school records, he re-wrote the Tar Heels record book. Some of the major records that he broke were: career passing yards (10,283), total offense in a career (11,292), passing yards in a game (550), career passing yard average per game (277.9), career passing touchdowns (92), passing touchdowns in a season (38), passing touchdowns in a game (6), consecutive games with a passing TD (37), and many, many more. His 92 touchdowns were third best in ACC league history in three years or less. He was 2nd all-time in the ACC for passing yards per game and passing efficiency.
How Does Sam Howell Compare to Other Quarterbacks?
Howell isn’t cracking the top five of Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs), Josh Allen (Bills), Joe Burrow (Bengals), Justin Herbert (Chargers), and Aaron Rodgers (Jets) any time soon.
Given some time though, he could certainly move up the rankings and ahead of guys like the Panthers’ Young (25th), or the Green Bay Packers’ Jordan Love (26th). Even guys like the Steelers’ Kenny Pickett (22nd), and the New England Patriots’ Mac Jones (21st) would seem to be in sight if he plays well.
Who’d He Beat Out?
In the opening week, Howell will face off against Colt McCoy, the Cardinals quarterback who was two behind Howell in the rankings at 29th.
The other quarterbacks that ranked below Howell were Baker Mayfield (Bucs) at 28th, C.J. Stroud (Texans) at 30th, Desmond Ridder (Falcons) at 31st, and Anthony Richardson (Colts) at 32nd.
How these rankings evolve over the course of the 2023 season will be interesting.
The success of the Commanders season may very well depend on Howell proving these rankings wrong, and moving up the chart.