Rams Face Interesting Decision With Stetson Bennett in Preseason

The Los Angeles Rams are set to play their first preseason game on Saturday against the Kansas City Chiefs. However, one of the biggest questions heading into that game is how head coach Sean McVay will handle the quarterback position.

There is no doubt that Ty Simpson will play. That has been confirmed by McVay and it’s the correct call given that it is the only live-game experience he’ll get as a rookie. Simpson only had one year of starting experience at Alabama. Playing during the preseason will be key for his overall development.

However, McVay wasn’t sure whether Bennett would play or rest like other key depth. McVay only noted on Tuesday that he had discussions with quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone and that he would have a clearer answer on Thursday.

Stetson Bennett Still Needs Live-Game Reps

Over the past few years, the Rams have rested their backup quarterback while Bennett has played the entirety of the game. With that said, the Rams’ backup at the time was Jimmy Garoppolo, who didn’t need preseason reps. This may be Bennett’s fourth preseason, but he still doesn’t have the same experience as Garoppolo.

The preseason could still be beneficial for Bennett. He’s certainly gotten more comfortable in the offense and looked good last year during the preseason. Bennett also had a lot more college experience than Simpson had coming out of Georgia.

Still, unlike Garoppolo, Bennett doesn’t have the experience of starting regular season games. In two years with the team, he hasn’t taken a real regular season snap outside of a kneel-down. The snaps during the preseason are the only live-game reps he’s gotten as well.

Rams Need to Maximize Ty Simpson’s Opportunities

That’s not to say that Bennett and Simpson should evenly split the preseason reps with one playing the first half and the other playing the second. However, it would make sense for Bennett to play the first quarter or at least the first drive or two simply to get those live-game reps even if that’s just for the first two preseason games.

While Bennett has shown improvement, he still has things that he needs to work on in games. His interception numbers were down last year, but he has a tendency to overlook coverage in the middle of the field or put the ball in harm’s way. That was seen during the joint practice with the Dallas Cowboys.

3️⃣ INTs

Have yourself a day, @justinbarron22 👏#CowboysCamp | @AmericanAir pic.twitter.com/Dfv4SLCtmK
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) August 11, 2026

Stetson Bennett Isn’t Jimmy Garoppolo

The priority for the preseason should be to get Simpson as many reps as possible. If the Rams chose to play him the entire game, it would make sense. At the same time, those are reps that are still valuable for Bennett. He’s not the seasoned veteran that Garoppolo was the last two years.

It’s clear that the Rams trust Bennett as he’s taken every backup quarterback rep throughout training camp. However, the live-game reps are still valuable for Bennett given his lack of regular season experience.

McVay has typically prioritized keeping starters and key depth healthy during the preseason. If Bennett is the backup quarterback, he would likely be included in that. However, there wouldn’t be a significant drop-off if something happened to Bennett given that the Rams drafted Simpson. They have two very capable backup options behind Stafford. Getting both players live-game experience during the preseason would benefit the Rams more than keeping Bennett on the sideline.

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