ODU alum Taylor Heinicke admitted being a bit “star-struck” when he met with Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers briefly after Washington’s 23-21 win over the Packers on Sunday.
“I grew up watching these guys, my dad was from Wisconsin, from the moment I was born, I was being a cheese head,” said Heinicke, who passed for 201 yards and two TDs in the win, which got the Commanders to within a game of the .500 mark.
“I was watching Brett Favre, and that’s the reason I started playing ball, grew up watching Aaron Rodgers do his thing, and one of my last fond memories of my father is watching the Super Bowl when the Packers beat the Steelers where Aaron Rodgers did his thing. To come out here today and beat the Packers and Aaron Rodgers on our field means a lot to me,” Heinicke said.
Heinicke, who passed for 14,959 yards and 132 TDs from 2011-2014 at ODU, was the starter in Washington last season, throwing for 3,419 yards, 20 TDs, 15 INTs, an 85.9 passer-efficiency rating and a 45.8 QBR.
The front office then decided to go after former #2 overall pick Carson Wentz, and gave him the QB1 job after taking on his $22 million salary and giving him a $6.3 million roster bonus.
Heinicke is an economical backup – $1.5 million in base salary, a total cap hit of $3.63 million with bonuses and incentives factored in.
How that came into being – Heinicke was out of football when he was signed off the street by Washington late in the 2020 season, saw action in one-regular season game, passing for 137 yards and a TD in a 20-13 loss to Carolina, then did everything but will Washington to an upset of the eventual Super Bowl champs, Tom Brady-led Tampa Bay, throwing for 306 yards and a TD, rushing for 46 yards and another score, becoming a modern-day Babe Laufenberg folk hero in D.C. in the process.
“Two years ago, I was out of the league, so every time I go out onto that field, it’s an opportunity for me to go play and play like it’s my last time, because you never know,” Heinicke said.
One game is, obviously, a small sample size, but the offense was better with Heinicke under center – gaining 364 yards (season average: 326.6), converting 7-of-16 (43.8 percent) on third down (season average: 36.8 percent).
The more mobile Heinicke was sacked just once. Wentz, in six games, was sacked 23 times.
There’s just a different energy to the offense with Heinicke under center.
“Go out there and play like it’s my last game. Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad, but that’s just how I play. I think that’s when I do my best,” Heinicke said.
“I think it’s the mentality he’s had. It is an underdog mentality,” head coach Ron Rivera said. “The thing about him is, we’ve got a tremendous amount of faith in what he can do. You look at the things that he does and the way he handles it.”
The Commanders had to place Wentz on injured reserve after he underwent surgery to repair a broken finger on his throwing hand in the Week 6 win over Chicago.
That means Wentz will be out for at least three more weeks.
Rivera hasn’t yet addressed what his thinking will be when Wentz eventually returns.
Heinicke isn’t focused on that, either. His focus is on just getting better.
“I think the biggest thing is experience,” Heinicke said. “I think the more reps you get, the more comfortable you are and the more confident you are. I think I learned a lot from last year and really tried to improve on it in the offseason and in training camp. Obviously, there’s still stuff to work on, but I feel really comfortable.”
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Chris Graham
