Rams' Sean McVay Says Stetson Bennett 'Less Likely Than It Is Likely' to Play in 2023

It seems like Stetson Bennett's regular-season NFL debut may have to wait until the 2024 campaign at the earliest.

Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay told reporters Monday the quarterback is "doing well" but also suggested he may not be available this year.

"I'm not ready to say that he won't be back with us at all this year, but it's probably less likely than it is likely he would be," McVay said.

Bennett was placed on the non-football injury list in September, and the head coach initially told reporters, "There are certain things that I think are a little bit bigger and more important, and out of respect for the particulars and the specifics, [I] want to be able to keep it in-house."

He later provided a more encouraging update:

Los Angeles selected Bennett in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL draft after he completed one of the most notable college careers in recent history. Despite being a relatively unheralded recruit, the signal-caller led the Georgia Bulldogs to back-to-back College Football Playoff national titles.

Bennett was not expected to start for the Rams, but the team liked what it saw from the Georgia product going into the draft and jumped at the opportunity to add some depth behind first-stringer Matthew Stafford.

The backup then appeared in all three of Los Angeles' preseason games.

However, Brett Rypien has been Stafford's backup while Bennett is on the non-football injury list.