Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell. Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Commanders are already looking ahead to 2024 after a series of trades this past week, and that means they are hard at work figuring out if Sam Howell is the long-term answer at the quarterback position.

The Commanders have a “strong belief” that Howell is good enough to be the team’s franchise quarterback, according to Dianna Russini of The Athletic. The organization feels that Howell is the quarterback they can build around, and are moving forward under that assumption.

Howell has had an up-and-down season, much like the Commanders. Coach Ron Rivera seemed a bit lukewarm on him recently, but Howell responded with a four-touchdown, 397-yard effort against the Philadelphia Eagles last Sunday.

Howell’s numbers are decent enough. He has thrown 13 touchdown passes to eight interceptions with 2,146 passing yards on the season. One could argue things would be even better for him if he could just buy a bit more time in the pocket to make plays.

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