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 might encounter against the Lions.
Stafford started the workout but left because of hamstring tightness. Garoppolo took first-team reps and Bennett was thrust unexpectedly into a second-team role, handling it without major error.
The atmosphere for visiting teams in Detroit’s Ford Field has become one of the NFL’s toughest. Bennett was not present for the Rams’ 24-23 NFC wild card playoff defeat there last season, but he played in numerous hostile environments while leading Georgia to back-to-back national titles.
The Rams will be off Friday, Saturday and Sunday before returning Monday for the start of game-week preparation.
Bennett said he plans to stay close to the Woodland Hills facility this weekend.
“Probably be around here,” he said. “Studying film, getting ready.”
Bennett could find himself in the game against the Lions if the Rams’ offensive line fails to adequately protect Stafford.
If the Rams were playing this week, right guard Kevin Dotson would be the only lineman with the starting role that was projected for him.
The Rams signed Jonah Jackson to a three-year contract that includes $34 million in guarantees, ostensibly to play left guard. The move, the Rams believed, would enable second-year pro Steve Avila to move from left guard to center.
Jackson suffered a shoulder injury early in training camp, however. He has been working at center, and McVay said it was a “good possibility” that Jackson would play center and Avila left guard in the opener.
That would be the latest shuffle for a line hit by a suspension and injuries.
Left tackle Alaric Jackson, who suffered an ankle injury early in training camp, is suspended for two games for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Right tackle Rob Havenstein also has been out since early in training camp because of an ankle injury.
Joe Noteboom and second-year pro Warren McClendon Jr. will be the tackles if Havenstein cannot play.
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Havenstein, a 10th-year pro, is “making tremendous progress,” McVay said. His status for the opener will be determined next week.
“To simulate football game-like movements and all the different things that occur, I think there would be a conversation that would be had,” McVay said.
McVay said Snead was continuing to search for linemen recently released by other teams to possibly add depth to the roster or practice squad.
Etc.
Receiver Puka Nacua (knee) has been practicing and will be ready to play against the Lions, McVay said. “Even though he had missed some time, you can see that physically he’s really sturdy,” McVay said. “Think he’s feeling really good … so he’ll be ready to roll.”… The Rams parted ways with Chili Davis, the assistant special teams coach, who joined the staff in the spring. McVay said they would hire a replacement. “We’re in the process of looking at that,” McVay said. “Wish Chili Davis the best. It was more of just kind of a coaching thing. We were looking to go a little bit different direction with somebody to work hand in hand with [special teams coordinator] Chase Blackburn.”
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
