The Los Angeles Rams have still not seen the on-field debut of 2023 draft pick Stetson Bennett. L.A. selected Bennett in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft, and after an arrest and an undisclosed personal issue, he missed the entire 2023 campaign after winning back-to-back titles with the Georgia Bulldogs.
Bennett was selected because of his work with Georgia, captaining that offense to two straight national championships. While defense was the calling card of those Georgia teams, Bennett still gets plenty of credit for the work that he did. He was meant to be Matthew Stafford’s backup quarterback last season and is still hopeful to have that role in 2024.
As he makes his return to professional football, he spoke about the need to move forward from his college success and focus on the accomplishments that are in front of him, via the Unreserved podcast with TJ Callaway:
“It was pretty special,” Bennett said of winning back-to-back titles at Georgia. “But, it’s a question of moving on from that because you got all these years to live and to go do other things to be successful at, to work hard at. You can’t just hang your head on that.”
After all that Bennett has been through in the last year, it’s expected that he would want to look ahead instead of focusing on the past. While the two titles at Georgia are what got him to the NFL, now that he’s there it’s about what he does moving forward that will cement his place.
Bennett was supposed to be the primary backup to Stafford in 2023, but taking a year away now put him in a place where he has to compete for that position with veteran Jimmy Garoppolo. The Rams signed the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback in an attempt to get steady and reliable play out of their backup.
The former Georgia quarterback could still win the job, but he has to keep his focus on the future instead of the past.
Stetson Bennett explains absence
Stetson Bennett did not give specifics when discussing why he missed the entirety of the 2023 season, but he said that he went home in an attempt to clear his head and get some fresh air. He praised the Rams for allowing him to take that kind of break and said that it was much needed.
