Stetson Bennett earned the start at quarterback for the LA Rams on Saturday. This seemed like a great sign for his career, but instead it turned into a major setback thanks to the stellar performance from fellow quarterback Ty Simpson.
Bennett barely played on Saturday as he led the offense in their first two drives of the game. His first drive ended in a punt after three plays, but his second drive he went 73 yards in 13 plays that ended in a field goal. Simpson then came in for the rest of the game and was dominant as he completed 21 of 25 passes for 190 yards and two touchdowns.
Bennett now faces a difficult test as he battles Simpson to be the Rams’ backup QB as Simpson showed he is capable of being a great NFL quarterback in the first preseason game of his career.
Stetson Bennett’s NFL career is in jeopardy after Rams’ first preseason game
After the Rams drafted Ty Simpson in the first round this year Bennett knew he had a difficult competition in front of him to be LA’s backup this season. That competition just became a lot more difficult after Simpson’s great performance, but his future NFL career is in trouble too.
Leading into the Rams’ game on Saturday Bennett was the leader to be their backup. When current starter Matthew Stafford was being rested during practice Bennett was the one getting snaps with the other starters. Getting the start during Saturday’s game further showed that he was leading Simpson.
Simpson however just made a big push to win the backup job over Bennett. It remains to be seen if he will actually win the backup job over Bennett, but this performance made life a lot more difficult for him.
Bennett also is running out of time to show every other NFL team what he is made of. His contract with the Rams expires after this season, and the consensus among NFL experts is that the Rams won’t resign him and will use Simpson as their backup until Stafford retires. Bennett needs every chance he can get to prove he’s a good player so he can get signed to a new contract next offseason, but if he doesn’t get to play then his chances of getting signed next offseason will likely decrease.
Stetson Bennett needs the Rams to give him a real opportunity
It was nice for the Rams to let Bennett play during their preseason game, but only playing two series isn’t a real chance. This allowed Ty Simpson to shine, and now Bennett needs a chance to do the same.
The Rams next preseason game is Saturday, Aug. 22. Head coach Sean McVay hasn’t said if Bennett will play or not, but there’s a chance he could be sidelined. McVay already thought about doing that for their first game because he tends to rest most of his veteran players, so he could make that choice going forward.
Bennett however needs a chance to respond to Simpson’s big game. He needs an opportunity to play most of the game so he can show how good of a player he is. If he doesn’t get that opportunity then there’s a chance Simpson could pass him on the depth chart, and if that happens Bennett doesn’t stand a chance at getting any playing time during the regular season.
McVay will soon decide who will play in their next preseason game. Simpson will more than likely play again since he is a rookie, but it would be really nice if they gave Bennett the same chance to prove himself too.
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