Rams general manager Les Snead provided details about quarterback Stetson Bennett missing most of the 2023 season.
Bennett, a two-time national champion quarterback at Georgia, missed most of his rookie season after being placed on the reserve/non-football injured list in September, but the Rams have remained silent about his absence.
“I know this. Last year was very beneficial for him. I think he took advantage of that year away from the game,” Snead said recently. News 19 interview“He’s a guy who’s worn down from everything that’s happened. Take him as an individual. He went to junior college, came back, turned down a small school and said, ‘I’ll give Georgia a try.’
“You win the job, and you win, and then you decide, ‘I’m going to come back,’ and then you come back and you either win again or you fail. That’s a big burden on a person, so I’m glad Stetson got that moment and was able to give you a little bit of a break.”
Snead said Bennett has been part of the Rams’ offseason program “from the beginning” and that the quarterback is “doing his job.”
The Rams’ OTAs will begin May 20 and run through June 6 with select dates before a mandatory minicamp from June 10-12.
Bennett played as a walk-on at Georgia in 2017 but never played in 2018 after Justin Fields committed to Georgia.
He then transferred to Jones University before returning to Georgia in 2019, but with Fields transferring to Ohio State, the Bulldogs needed a backup for Jake Fromm.
Bennett led Georgia to back-to-back championships and was named Offensive MVP in Finals wins over Alabama and TCU after the Rams selected him in the fourth round (128th overall) of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Rams coach Sean McVay said Bennett “looked good” when he participated in the team’s offseason program last month.
“He was listening intently to the meeting.” Mr. McVay at that time.
Last season was a strange start for Bennett.
The 26-year-old quarterback was expected to be Matthew Stafford’s backup last season. Withdrew due to shoulder injury before the Week 1 game against the Seahawks.
McVay said at the time he wanted to keep details about Bennett’s absence “internal.”
“There are some things that I think are a little bit bigger and more important, so I want to leave it at that, respecting the details and the specifics and allowing them to be handled internally.” said the Super Bowl winning coach..
Bennett was arrested for public intoxication in Dallas in January 2023, shortly after Georgia’s win over TCU to win the national title.
The Rams open the 2024 season on Sept. 8 against the Lions in a playoff rematch in Detroit.
