The previously undefeated Washington Commanders ran into a buzzsaw Week 3 when the Buffalo Bills marched right into FedEx Field and dominated Ron Rivera's squad, 37-3. It was a blowout from beginning to end as Buffalo's defense completely destroyed Washington.
Sam Howell completed 19 of 29 passes for 170 yards and four interceptions, and was sacked a total of nine times for a loss of 45 yards. He became the first quarterback to be sacked nine times while throwing four interceptions in a single game since Warren Moon vs. Dallas back in 1985. The second-year signal-caller is being sacked at a near-historic rate, as the 19 sacks the Commanders have allowed so far are tied for the second most through three games of a season since 1970, our research team here at CBS Sports revealed. Next Gen Stats says Howell was pressured on 27 of 39 dropbacks Sunday, which was the second-highest pressure rate recorded in a game in the Next Gen Stats era.
Howell was sacked six times in the season opener vs. the Arizona Cardinals, four times in Denver against the Broncos and then added nine to his tally on Sunday. If you were curious, the most-sacked team in NFL history was the 1986 Philadelphia Eagles, who allowed 104 sacks. It's only Week 3, but this Commanders team is on pace to allow a record-high 107.6 sacks.
Head coach Ron Rivera and general manager Martin Mayhew attempted to revamp this offensive line in the offseason, signing interior lineman Nick Gates and right tackle Andrew Wylie. But those additions haven't helped to make life easier on Howell.
"We take that personally," Wylie said, via The Athletic. "We got to do a better job keeping [Howell] upright. We got to do a better job getting him that extra tick, because he's a baller. He's trying to make plays; that's what we need out of him."
Next up for the Commanders in Week 4 are the Eagles, who have one of the most aggressive defensive fronts in the NFL. Rookie Jalen Carter recorded a total of 11 pressures in his first two NFL games.
