Sam Howell suddenly has some competition at quarterback.
The Washington Commanders are expected to sign Jacoby Brissett, NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported on Wednesday. Brissett's new deal will have a $8 million base salary with a max value of $10 million, per Pelissero.
Brissett fills the role of the veteran in the QB room to compete with Howell for the starting job. Commanders head coach Ron Rivera said that Howell would not be given the starting job and would need to compete to win it.
Taylor Heinicke, who started nine games for the team last season and 24 combined over the previous two seasons combined, reached a deal with the Atlanta Falcons earlier this week.
Brissett, 30, brings plenty of experience to Washington, starting 48 games over seven NFL seasons with four different clubs. Most recently, he was the stand-in starter for the Cleveland Browns while Deshaun Watson served his 11-game suspension in 2022.
Last season, Brissett completed 64% of his passes for 2,608 yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions, also rushing for 243 yards and two more scores. The Browns went 4-7 with Brissett as a starter.
Howell, a fifth-round pick a year ago, started the season finale, completing 11 of 19 passes (57.9%) for 169 yards, one TD and one pick, while also rushing for a 5-yard TD.
The Brissett signing also likely puts an end to the talk that the Commanders could make a push for Lamar Jackson. The Baltimore Ravens' franchise-tagged QB has not been able to talk with other teams until the start of the new league year on Wednesday.
