ASHBURN, Va. — Sam Howell showed more signs Sunday that he may be the long-term answer at quarterback for the Washington Commanders.
His latest encouraging performance came in yet another close loss.
Howell did his part, especially in the fourth quarter, to give the Commanders a chance at a second straight road victory. But Washington was unable to stop Seattle on its final drive, and Jason Myers kicked a 43-yard field goal on the final play of the game to give the Seahawks a 29-26 win.
Coach Ron Rivera had a lot of good things to say about Howell's performance Sunday, saying he "can be the dude" for the franchise going forward.
"It's headed in that direction, it really is," Rivera said. "I mean, he has by no means arrived as a player — he's still growing, learning and developing in this scheme. The scheme is still kind of morphing to fit him and his abilities and the playmakers around him."
But the coach was quick to point out that Howell and the team are still a work in progress.
"There's some great examples on the tape of missed opportunities on the offensive side that we could have had that a more veteran Sam Howell is going to see and make those plays," he said.
Despite the bright spots, Rivera was frustrated by his team's lack of consistency, something he's discussed with Chick Hernandez in the past.
"We held them to four for 14 on third downs. When you do something like that, you expect to be a little bit better," Rivera said.
Rivera again stressed his team's youth, especially on the defensive side.
"Look at who we have out there, we have a lot of young guys," the coach said. "That's a thing that I think a lot of people don't understand. When you have guys who are replacing guys because of injury, now they're thrust into a position where they've gotta show up and develop. Eventually, it will come. I know this is a production-based business, and we gotta produce. We gotta win."
One of those young defensive players is rookie first-round pick Emmanuel Forbes. He was ejected early on in the game because of a helmet-to-helmet hit. Rivera was surprised by the ejection, and said he hasn't gotten an explanation from the league.
"Yes, it was helmet-to-helmet so I have no issue with the penalty being thrown," Rivera said. "My concern is what led to the ejection because from what I saw the receiver went down, he got up, went into the huddle. So it wasn't like it was a vicious intended hit."
Meanwhile, veteran player Brian Robinson Jr. had a huge game, including a 51-yard touchdown reception at the start of the game.
"Those are impactful plays. We've gotta continue to find ways to get the ball in his hands, whether it's by handoff, it's by toss or it's by a pass," Rivera said.
With the last-place New York Giants coming to town Sunday, there's still hope of getting in the playoff race. The Commanders opened as 9 1/2-point favorites on FanDuel Sportsbook despite losing at New York last month.
"It's all in front of us," Rivera said. "The opportunity to win games is in front of us."