If you like pass rush, this is a Thursday night game for the ages. Sam Howell and Justin Fields are taking sacks like nobody else – and not just relative to other quarterbacks this season.
David Carr is remembered as a quarterback who took a ton of sacks with the Texans, but Fields and Howell are both getting sacked a lot more often.
Carr in his 11-year career was sacked on 10.5 percent of his pass plays. But Fields in his first two-plus seasons is over 13 percent. And while Howell is only five starts into his career, he’s up at 14.5 percent.
For fun, I used the search tools at stathead.com to call up all quarterbacks who’ve attempted at least 500 passes in the 32-team era. The below chart shows the 29 who’ve been sacked on over 8 percent of their career attempts. (Howell hasn’t yet made it up to 500 attempts, but I tossed him on as an extra.)
| SACKED ON AT LEAST 8 PERCENT OF ATTEMPTS | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Years | Att | Sack | Pct |
| • Sam Howell | 2022-23 | 159 | 27 | 14.5% |
| • Justin Fields | 2021-23 | 711 | 108 | 13.2% |
| Josh Rosen | 2018-21 | 513 | 61 | 10.6% |
| David Carr | 2002-12 | 2,267 | 267 | 10.5% |
| Charlie Frye | 2005-09 | 677 | 79 | 10.4% |
| J.P. Losman | 2004-11 | 952 | 108 | 10.2% |
| Kellen Clemens | 2006-17 | 638 | 66 | 9.4% |
| Robert Griffin | 2012-20 | 1,268 | 131 | 9.4% |
| Tyrod Taylor | 2011-23 | 1,553 | 160 | 9.3% |
| Zach Wilson | 2021-23 | 748 | 77 | 9.3% |
| JaMarcus Russell | 2007-09 | 680 | 70 | 9.3% |
| Kevin Kolb | 2007-12 | 755 | 77 | 9.3% |
| Deshaun Watson | 2017-23 | 2,020 | 206 | 9.3% |
| Colin Kaepernick | 2011-16 | 1,692 | 171 | 9.2% |
| Daunte Culpepper | 2002-09 | 2,359 | 231 | 8.9% |
| Chris Simms | 2004-09 | 511 | 49 | 8.8% |
| Michael Vick | 2002-15 | 3,104 | 295 | 8.7% |
| Drew Bledsoe | 2002-06 | 2,199 | 205 | 8.5% |
| Damon Huard | 2002-08 | 658 | 61 | 8.5% |
| Colt McCoy | 2010-22 | 1,220 | 113 | 8.5% |
| Russell Wilson | 2012-23 | 5,350 | 493 | 8.4% |
| C.J. Beathard | 2017-23 | 512 | 47 | 8.4% |
| Daniel Jones | 2019-23 | 1,871 | 171 | 8.4% |
| Blaine Gabbert | 2011-23 | 1,538 | 140 | 8.3% |
| Christian Ponder | 2011-14 | 1,057 | 95 | 8.2% |
| Josh McCown | 2002-19 | 2,633 | 235 | 8.2% |
| Tim Rattay | 2002-07 | 711 | 63 | 8.1% |
| Billy Volek | 2003-11 | 558 | 49 | 8.1% |
| Marcus Mariota | 2015-22 | 2,095 | 183 | 8.0% |
| Geno Smith | 2013-23 | 1,701 | 148 | 8.0% |
Statistics compiled using search tools at Pro-Football-Reference.com
This isn’t surprising in that both Fields and Howell play for lesser teams. And both had issues with sacks in college. Fields was sacked on over 8 percent of his attempts in each of his final two seasons at Ohio State (doubly damning, considering the talent around him). That’s the worst of any quarterback selected in the first round in the last 15 years. And Howell was sacked 48 times in 12 games his final year at North Carolina.
As for tonight’s game, you can be sure Washington’s pass rushers will be coming in loaded for bear. They sacked Fields 5 times when these teams met in a Thursday night game a year ago. (You can sure I’ve already penciled in the Commanders Defense as a starter in my Blackout entry.
The Bears Defense is less compelling, given their inability to get much going on that side of the ball. They’ve got a league-low 2 sacks, and they finished with a league-low 20 sacks last year. They’re just not very good.
—Ian Allan