Stetson Bennett needed a good showing on Saturday to help establish his role as the Los Angeles Rams’ backup quarterback, and he did exactly that.
In fairness, maybe Bennett is locked in no matter what he does through three preseason games. But after rookie Ty Simpson looked solid (if not better) last week, there was countless chatter about when Simpson would jump him, blogs about whether or not Bennett should be traded and general doubt about his status as an NFL player.
But there was one throw in the preseason matchup with the New Orleans Saints that shows why Bennett can stay on an NFL roster for the long term.
For the sake of transparency, this original topic for this week’s film review was rookie receiver C.J. Daniels, who led all players with eight receptions in the blowout win. After rewatching the game, there weren’t a ton of “wow” plays from Daniels en route to his successful outing, at least not ones we could easily break down without the coaches film available yet. This throw by Bennett, however, stood out as much on rewatch as it did live (and it even has an end zone view, so props to the CBS LA crew for that).
J.B. Long called it out immediately on the local TV broadcast, that this is a perfectly layered throw from Bennett.
He beats the Saints’ zone coverage by dropping this ball on a line right between two defenders, and watch for when Tyler Scott breaks at the top of his route. This isn’t the most astounding anticipatory throw in NFL history, but Bennett was still able to get this out and to the right spot without needing his receiver to camp out for it.
Footwork-wise, it’s not perfect but for the sake of this particular evaluation it almost helps because you can see the torque Bennett gets behind this throw, hitting the exact equilibrium needed between power and touch to get this ball to Scott on time.
We should also note that the protection is stellar here. Bennett gets bumped softly just after the throw, but you can’t ask for a better pocket than this regardless of the caliber of opponent. Receiver left and tight end right both execute their assignments well while the rest of the line totally neutralizes the Saints’ pass rush. It should always be easier to pass from a clean pocket than a muddy one, but don’t hold that against the quarterback here; you would rather see good protection and strong execution instead of more pressure and a total meltdown.
When you’re used to watching a guy like Matthew Stafford or any other elite quarterback, this isn’t an other-worldly throw by any means. Mahomes, Allen, Jackson, Burrow, Prescott, Love, Herbert, that class of quarterback rarely, if ever, has an issue making this throw. But we’re not talking about a passer of that caliber, we’re talking about a somewhat fringe backup who still hasn’t taken a snap in a meaningful game. We know Bennett can complete easy, gimme throws like flats and arrows off of naked bootlegs, but he needs to show that he can make pro throws and push the ball downfield while doing it. He checks that box here.
It’s harsh but fair to say Bennett does not have long-term starter upside in the NFL. The traits just aren’t there for that. However, a solid backup quarterback doesn’t need to be able to make every throw or create in every situation, they need to keep the ball safe and push it in specific spots. The Rams need to see completions like this to feel comfortable in putting him on the field in a pinch, and he needs to see it to feel comfortable getting another paycheck after his rookie deal expires next spring.
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