Embarrassing streak set to end for lowly Commanders

For the lowly Washington Commanders, this is a season to celebrate small victories.

One of those may be acknowledged Sunday when, barring a change of events, an unfortunate Commanders streak will end. 

Per JP Finlay of the NBC TV affiliate in Washington, Sam Howell will become the first Washington QB to start every game in a season since Kirk Cousins in 2017.

After Cousins left as a free agent following the 2017-18 campaign, the Commanders (4-12) started multiple QBs every season from 2018-22. 

In 2018, Colt McCoy, Mark Sanchez and Josh Johnson started at least once following original starter Alex Smith's devastating leg injury. In 2019, Case Keenum began the season as starter, but McCoy and rookie Dwayne Haskins also started.

Haskins earned the job to begin 2020, but the team benched him for Kyle Allen and then for Smith, who had made a miraculous recovery. Taylor Heinicke made his first start for Washington in the playoffs that season and remained on the roster as a backup for veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick in 2021.

In Week 1 in 2021, however, Fitzpatrick suffered a hip injury and missed the remainder of the season. Heinicke started 15 of the remaining 16 games, with Garrett Gilbert starting the other game when COVID sidelined Heinicke.

In 2022, Heinicke (5-3-1) and Carson Wentz (2-5) started the majority of games. Then, in Week 18 against Dallas, the Commanders turned to Howell, who has started every game since. 

Inconsistency plagued Howell (20 TD passes, league-high 19 interceptions) this season, and it's unclear what his future is with the team. The Commanders planned to bench him in Week 17, but Jacoby Brissett suffered a hamstring injury during the week and Howell got another start. Despite a league-high 61 sacks, Howell has stayed healthy all season. 

Washington faces major changes in the offseason, including the expected dismissal of head coach Ron Rivera. So, in a season of far more bad news than good, Commanders fans can at least celebrate the end of a revolving door at QB.