Ready or not, Stetson Bennett will make his NFL debut as Rams No. 2 quarterback

Rams quarterback Stetson Bennett showed enough in the preseason for coach Sean McVay to be comfortable with him as the primary backup for the first two weeks of the season. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Quarterback Stetson Bennett got the news from Rams coach Sean McVay in a Houston hotel elevator.

It was the morning of the Rams’ final preseason game, and Bennett had prepared all week for his third preseason start.

“By the way,” McVay said, turning to Bennett. “You’re not playing today.”

Bennett did not immediately comprehend the subtext: With Jimmy Garoppolo suspended for the first two regular-season games, Bennett would be held out against the Texans because he had earned the opportunity to be Matthew Stafford’s backup for the Sept. 8 season opener at Detroit.

“People were telling me, ‘Congrats,’” Bennett, on Thursday, said chuckling. “And I was like, ‘What for?’ I wanted to play.

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“Then I was like, ‘OK, I guess this means.’ ”

A year after Bennett, a 2023 fourth-round draft pick, was placed on the non-football injury/illness list, he will be in uniform for his first regular-season NFL game.

“I’m excited,” Bennett said of the backup role. “I think it’s a really good opportunity to just get locked in, and go be ready if anything happens.”

Bennett won McVay’s and general manager Les Snead’s confidence with his performances in preseason victories over the Dallas Cowboys and the Chargers, and during a joint practice with the Cowboys.

In the game against the Cowboys, Bennett overcame four interceptions and passed for a score-tying touchdown pass with four seconds left. He also tossed a long touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to help beat the Chargers.

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But a practice with the Cowboys between those games was the closest scenario to what Bennett…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/ready-not-stetson-bennett-nfl-232018248.html

Author : LA Times

Publish date : 2024-08-29 23:20:18

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