The Los Angeles Rams may go into the 2024 season not knowing who their backup quarterback is.
Rams head coach Sean McVay said Thursday that the team would connect with Stetson Bennett at “the suitable time,” after the rookie quarterback was mysteriously placed on the reserve/non-football illness list in September and never heard from again.
“I believe the very first thing is you connect with him, which we’ll do this at the suitable time, and also you determine, where are you at and is that this something that we feel like is best for him and for our football team to bring him back into this ecosystem?” McVay said. “Those will likely be conversations that we are going to have. After which, I believe once we’ve got a greater idea of what we’ll do with that, then that can give clarity.
“But you do be certain that that you understand that without delay, we’ve got Matthew Stafford. And really in our minds, we don’t have a backup quarterback that’s on this roster. But we’ll see what that appears like by way of how that affects Stetson and the draft or free agency.”
Just over a month ago, McVay said he was unsure whether the two-time National Champion at Georgia would return to the Rams in 2024.
Bennett entered the season because the expected backup to Matthew Stafford but didn’t play a single snap in his rookie 12 months, with the team eventually turning to veteran Carson Wentz.
The team never provided any details on Bennett’s designation, apart from McVay describing the move as “larger than football.”
The 2023 fourth-round pick won two straight national championships because the quarterback of the Georgia Bulldogs.
He threw for 8,429 yards, 66 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in his college profession before being chosen by the Rams.
The Rams, meanwhile, want to improve upon their 2023 season that saw them make the playoffs as a Wild Card team before falling to the Detroit Lions during Super Wild Card Weekend.