The Los Angeles Rams have decided to name Stetson Bennett as the backup quarterback for the first two games of the upcoming season. This announcement comes from head coach Sean McVay, who is looking to solidify the team's quarterback situation.
Bennett, a two-time national champion from the University of Georgia, will step in as the backup while Jimmy Garoppolo, who was signed this offseason, will miss the initial games due to a violation of the NFL's performance-enhancing substances policy. Garoppolo has acknowledged the mistake that led to his suspension.
"I mean, just messed up the TUE, really," Garoppolo said, via the team's official transcript. "I hate to joke about it, but just messed up the TUE when I first got to Las Vegas and yeah, bad timing, I guess."
Despite missing all of last season to focus on his mental health, Bennett showed promise during the preseason. McVay has expressed satisfaction with his progress since returning to the team, noting that Bennett has been making strides in his development.
“I think he’s done a really good job of taking steps in the right direction,” McVay said. “All we talk about is making progress and what does that progress look like? . . . He is progressing. I’ve been really pleased. He hasn’t gotten a ton of reps. He’s gotten a ton of reps in these preseason games, but Jimmy’s taking the majority of the other reps. What I was really pleased that he did is when Matthew ended up coming out after a couple of periods against Dallas, I thought Stetson came in and did a magnificent job when he wasn’t planning on practicing. I thought that was really beneficial for him as well. Doing it against the opponent where we had a couple turnovers, and it was after the game. He was able to bounce back. I thought he saw their coverages well. I thought he made good decisions for the most part. I thought yesterday was a lot of the same"
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Bennett's performance during the preseason has had its ups and downs, which is expected given his lack of experience. However, McVay's confidence in him could mean that Bennett remains the backup throughout the season.
As the Rams prepare for the upcoming games, all eyes will be on Bennett to see how he handles the responsibilities of being a backup quarterback.
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