The Washington Commanders ‘Deserve Some Credit’ After Losing to the Philadelphia Eagles
There are no moral victories for the Washington Commanders, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some positives to take away from the team’s second straight loss.
On Sunday, the Washington Commanders were defeated 34-31 in overtime by the Philadelphia Eagles.
Commanders quarterback Sam Howell stated all week that his performance against the Buffalo Bills was not representative of who he is as a player, and he showed it in Week 4 against an arguably better squad.
According to Washington coach Ron Rivera, his quarterback was not the only one who showed signs of improvement this weekend.
“That’s a hell of a football team we played out there, but I think we have a hell of a football team in this locker room,” Rivera was quoted as saying. “They deserve some credit.”
After receiving only 10 carries the previous weekend, running back Brian Robinson Jr. received 14 this week and added two catches for 51 yards, including a strong 15-yard touchdown run during a crucial drive for the club.
Looking back at Howell’s Week 3 loss to the Bills, he exited with a 41.5 quarterback rating, four interceptions, and only 170 yards passing. A bounceback week was a requirement for the rookie quarterback.
He departs Philadelphia with 290 yards passing, one touchdown, no interceptions, and a 98.6 quarterback rating in a losing effort.
It wasn’t great, and he won’t take credit for any defeat, but it was exactly the type of performance we expected from Howell in his sixth NFL start.
“I think I did some good things out there but at the end of the day we didn’t win,” he remarked. “It’s my job to go out there and get wins for this organization.”
Losses are never celebrated by players or coaches, but if we had told most Commanders fans at the start of the season that the team would be 2-2 at this stage, many would have been relieved.
If one of those games was a close overtime loss to one of the league’s finest, it would be disappointing but encouraging.
And that’s what we’ve got after four games.
The club has now proven that they can compete with the best in the NFC, and they did so in their beloved home stadium.
Washington will face the Eagles again at the end of the NFL’s second quarter, this time inside FedEx Field after what appears to be three fairly winnable games up to that point.
But we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves.
For the time being, even if the squad will not be celebrating any moral wins, the Commanders’ confidence should be as high as it has been all season.
