Washington Hires Adam Peters as GM!

Got to say, I wouldn't mind (trading down.)

I think there's a 75% chance we draft a QB with our first, but if they looked at Howell and came to the conclusion that he can do it... That would be exciting.

On Twitter, someone did a Maye and Howell comparison of their second year at UNC. Howell beat Maye in almost every category. Get the kid an offensive line. On the other hand, if you think Maye can be coached up to Josh Allen or Herbert you can't really pass that up. Right now, both players are question marks.

 
I’ll stick to my guns. Unless you know Howell is a franchise QB, you have to swing for one with that #2 pick. Have to. Previous misses don’t matter, the solution to that isn’t to stop swinging. If Peters and company are convinced Howell is a future star, a trade back is reasonable. But not sure how anyone can be sure? I suppose the other possibility is that they don’t view the top 2 QBs (by current rankings) as an upgrade to Howell. Again, probably unlikely but if that was the case they could elect to trade back if they like a QB who will be available later best.
 
You’re right, no one outside of Nostradamas could be sure. I think though that a far higher percentage of evaluators would say he will not be a future star than will be.

I really, really like the young man but I can’t make him taller or process faster. As bad as the oline looked he had the 16th most time to throw per play in the league (according to Keim).
 
That’s a season average. I’d love to see OL stats for the first part of the season vs. the 2nd half. Rivera told Keim that the lack of protection in the middle was the biggest issue for Sam down the stretch with (Rivera’s words) a ‘piecemeal line’, especially when Tyler Larson got hurt. FWIW. My eyes told me that Howell was under duress a lot in 2023, regardless of what the stats say but I could also be looking for excuses for Howell.

Howell’s height is a big issue. Processing for most rookies is an issue but I would argue that can improve a lot with more experience.
 
That’s a season average. I’d love to see OL stats for the first part of the season vs. the 2nd half. Rivera told Keim that the lack of protection in the middle was the biggest issue for Sam down the stretch with (Rivera’s words) a ‘piecemeal line’, especially when Tyler Larson got hurt. FWIW. My eyes told me that Howell was under duress a lot in 2023, regardless of what the stats say but I could also be looking for excuses for Howell.

Howell’s height is a big issue. Processing for most rookies is an issue but I would argue that can improve a lot with more experience.
From what I read Caleb Williams and Howell are the same height. I do remember reading an article about Brees and the Saints how they blocked a very specific way and favored a very particular set of traits for their linemen because of Brees' height. So, it sounds like height is always a serious factor, but one that can be navigated with difficulty. Those extra three inches Maye has might really be an advantage.
 
I wonder if Peters is talking to EB and other coaches about Howell to get their take on the season. I would assume they are all doing their day job until their fates are known with a new head coach.
 
Pressure is only part of the equation though. There was a lot of noise about a lack of separation between receivers and defenders which seems to be attributed to route design.

First-year QB + questionable OL + pass-heavy, run-averse OC - receiver separation = real issues
 
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Crazy, but interesting take…




I don’t know about zero chance, but I’ve been thinking that peters is going to take a long hard look at Sam despite the draft position. That doesn’t mean he’s sold on him as the guy, but I don’t think he’s written him off yet either.
 
Another thing I have seen talked about in the Brees vs Howell debates is that Brees made himself taller in the pocket by getting up more on his toes, where Howell showed a tendency to get shorter in the pocket.

There is also the concept in the NFL of throwing receivers open. I very rarely saw that from Sam.

QB guru Rivera said that he views Howell as a future starter in the league. He didn’t say future high end starter, which I hope the new brain trust desires.

Can Howell be the answer? I don’t know for certain but I wouldn’t bet my future on it based on his body of work to date. He is skilled at the off-schedule stuff but needs to show much more on the on-scheduled.
 
I’ll stick to my guns. Unless you know Howell is a franchise QB, you have to swing for one with that #2 pick. Have to. Previous misses don’t matter, the solution to that isn’t to stop swinging. If Peters and company are convinced Howell is a future star, a trade back is reasonable. But not sure how anyone can be sure? I suppose the other possibility is that they don’t view the top 2 QBs (by current rankings) as an upgrade to Howell. Again, probably unlikely but if that was the case they could elect to trade back if they like a QB who will be available later best.
I feel like I’d rather use the #2 pick to grab a QB and then let him and Howell show what they got in training camp.
If Howell shows better, then start him with the rookie on the bench. Give him a year to learn the NFL. If Howell falters then throw him in later in the season or just use Howell to bridge to 2025.
If the rookie shows up in training camp then start him with Howell as backup.
We could potentially have two starting caliber QBs in house under cheap contracts for the start of this ‘rebuild’ which isn’t a bad thing to have.
Of course I’d also trade our last pick back to grab a QB as the Mr Irrelevant pick, just in case 😂
We could have our very own Garapolo/Lance/Purdy scenario, but without having to give up picks! Worked well in Peters last stop 😀
 
He’s going to have to get a lot better. Tough to know what his ceiling is. He may find himself a victim of poor timing if we draft a QB and they shine and might have to wait for injury or another locale to get another extended chance. Unless he balls out and beats out a drafted rookie.
 
Actually in regards to my last post, and reference to Purdy… maybe we’re all looking at the wrong end of the draft. Just sayin! 😜
 
I am going into the draft with a greater sense of confidence than in past years. Better GM to me means better football decisions and a PROCESS for selecting those 5 picks in the first 100.

I never really had the sense that Ron had a process.

At least one that would result in VALUE picks.

To me his first round picks like Jamin Davis and Emmanuel Forbes seemed like guys that would have been there later in the draft than at #19 and #16 respectively.

We were hiding guys like Braedon Daniels at the Park who didn't appear to have NFL ability.

Draft picks were never cut when they couldn't play, they were maneuvered onto IR and then hidden away with comments about looking forward to seeing them next year in training camp until the attention was gone and theses guys could be safely released as an afterthought.
 
Mayhew staying in some capacity. Hurney is also rumored to be staying.

No idea if this is a good thing or unfortunate.
 
I never have had a problem with Mayhew as I have always felt that the department was hamstrung by Rivera and I have no idea what Hurney even does.

I would love to know who exactly was most responsible for the players drafted and the FA signings. My suspicion is Rivera. If not, whoever was should be shown the door.
 
One thing about Harris owned teams; they are PATIENT. Their goal is not "8-8 in perpetuity" - which is what impatience can get you in today's sports leagues with parity as one of the goals. They would rather go 4-13 for a year or two and then get sustained 13-4s after that. So, in that regard, I would think keeping Howell and trading down is very much on the table. Yes, a great QB may be available, and maybe taking a shot is a good idea, but without the group around them, a QB alone doesn't get you from where we are to the sustained excellence. We need a LOT more; the cupboard is quite bare post-Rivera. He stripped us down organizationally on and off the field. So, I would probably be happy if they decided to trade down, however I am giving them the benefit of the doubt until I see measurably bad things start to happen. Even then, I would at least like to see them learn from mistakes.
 
Mayhew staying in some capacity. Hurney is also rumored to be staying.

No idea if this is a good thing or unfortunate.
Me neither. I think when he was hired the rumor was that Hurney was a good numbers guy that you wanted to keep far from personnel decisions.
 
If EB remains I would be in favor of staying with Howell and trading back. No way I would give him a rookie to misuse.

If EB doesn’t remain what solid OC candidate is still available? Pat Shurmur? 😑
 
Hearing Brian Griese’s name a lot
 
Yeah, me too. (But I’ve heard a lot of names a lot.) 🤪
 

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