{"id":982891,"date":"2026-08-25T14:57:19","date_gmt":"2026-08-25T14:57:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/982891\/"},"modified":"2026-08-25T14:57:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-25T14:57:19","slug":"sean-mcvay-wont-name-a-matthew-stafford-backup-yet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/982891\/","title":{"rendered":"Sean McVay won\u2019t name a Matthew Stafford backup yet"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Los Angeles Rams made a bold move by drafting Ty Simpson in the first round this year, but that does not mean Les Snead\u2019s gutsy decision will help give Sean McVay an adequate 2026 backup for Matthew Stafford. Neither Simpson nor Stetson Bennett have been consistent enough (or had enough opportunity) in the preseason<\/a> to make it obvious to anyone who should be L.A.\u2019s second quarterback on the depth chart, and that includes McVay.<\/p>\n

As of Monday, McVay told reporters that he still does not know who the Rams backup quarterback will be<\/a> in Week 1 against the 49ers.<\/p>\n

McVay added that while Simpson is guaranteed to play against the Chargers in the preseason finale on Thursday, he hasn\u2019t decided if Bennett will get any more reps. What does it mean? We\u2019ll know by Sunday, which is when teams must turn in their final cuts and 53-man rosters.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the rest of the Rams news from Monday:<\/p>\n

\u201cFollowing their second preseason game<\/a>, the Los Angeles Rams<\/a> made two additional signings on Monday. The Rams signed edge rusher Devean Deal and cornerback Steven Gilmore to the roster. They placed cornerback Zech McPhearson<\/a> and edge rusher Keir Thomas<\/a> on injured reserve in corresponding moves.<\/p>\n

Deal was an undrafted free agent out of TCU who was signed by the Seattle Seahawks<\/a> after the draft. However, he was cut on May 14 to make room on the roster for wide receivers Rashad Rochelle and Trayvon Rudolph.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cHead coach Sean McVay<\/a> has not decided whether Stetson Bennett or Ty Simpson will serve as Matthew Stafford\u2019s backup this season<\/a>, with the Rams\u2019 final preseason game Thursday against the Los Angeles Chargers<\/a>. McVay confirmed Simpson will play, while Bennett\u2019s status remains to be determined.<\/p>\n

Simpson was the story<\/a> in Week 1, completing 84 percent of his passes for nearly 200 yards and two touchdowns. Bennett, meanwhile, played just two series before his day was done, giving Simpson the edge in the competition.<\/p>\n

But Week 2 belonged to Bennett. He received the bulk of the playing time in the Rams\u2019 second game of the preseason and made the most of it in a 34-0 victory over the Saints.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cLos Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay spoke with the media following Monday\u2019s practice in Woodland Hills. Watch him discuss preseason roster moves, allocating reps to quarterbacks Stetson Bennett IV and Ty Simpson, the importance of trust, and more.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBrenda Song, we are sitting in a golf cart in the bowels of SoFi Stadium moments after you made your broadcast debut. How did that feel?<\/p>\n

I\u2019m on a high. I\u2019m not joking when I say it was my dream. I grew up loving sports but I\u2019m 5\u20192\u201d \u2014 my feet barely touch the ground when I\u2019m sitting in a chair \u2014 so I just love watching from the sidelines as a couch analyst. I\u2019m just so grateful to the Ramily for letting me go up there and live out my dream and call the game. Sitting next to Rob Havenstein, an incredible right tackle, was insane.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cWaive\/injured LB Daniel Rickert<\/p>\n

Rickert injured his knee against the Saints and was unable to return to the game. Unlike Thomas and McPhearson, he wasn\u2019t placed on IR, but rather waived with an injury designation. If he clears waivers, he will revert to the Rams\u2019 injured reserve.<\/p>\n

OL Justin Dedich passes physical<\/p>\n

Sean McVay said last week that Dedich was expected to return to practice soon, and on Monday, he was back on the field after being activated off the NFI list. Dedich had been on the NFI list since injuring his hand at home in July, causing him to miss all of camp and the preseason up to this point. Now that he\u2019s healthy, he can resume practicing.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cBut at one point, many fans lobbied hard for general manager Les Snead to save Wilson\u2019s career, back when he played for the New York Jets.<\/p>\n

LA\u2019s need for a quarterback succession plan led fans to consider almost every young hurler. And you needn\u2019t turn back the calendar too far to revisit the Wilson-Rams rumors.<\/a><\/p>\n

At the time, restoring luster to tarnished quarterback reputations was an LA specialty. But that restoration was only possible because Snead has a fine eye for talent. As fans relish the promise of both Bennett and Simpson, they can be thankful that the Rams front office knows who to invest in and who to avoid.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cStetson Bennett was rewarded after impresive preseason performance<\/p>\n

Ty Simpson was catching up to Bennett at the start of the Rams\u2019 preseason games. Simpson shined in their first game<\/a> two weeks ago and had NFL fans and analysts proclaiming that he was the obvious choice to be the Rams\u2019 backup behind Matthew Stafford this year. These individuals were doubting Bennett, but that is typically when he does his best work.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s not going to Australia. At this point, I\u2019d go, well, he\u2019s not going to do anything. I mean, he\u2019s not going to be a difference-maker, I don\u2019t think, as of yet,\u201d replied Simms.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, yeah, it seems right now that it\u2019s either he\u2019s going to sit out and then just come in the door when he feels ready \u2013 maybe late September, something like that \u2013 or are they going to sign him up and put him on the PUP right away?\u201d<\/p>\n

Donald has proven to be a difference-maker over the years, but there is a clear concern over his ability to slot back into the team after some time away from the game.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cRams Offensive Players Who Missed One Preseason Game<\/p>\n

OT AJ Arcuri (Week 1)WR Xavier Smith (Week 2)iOL Beaux Limmer (Week 2)OL Keagen Trost (Injured)<\/p>\n

It does seem notable that the Rams signed Alex Bachman after the first preseason game to return punts and take Xavier Smith\u2019s spot at wide receiver. An argument can be made that Smith was on the roster bubble<\/a> heading into the preseason. However, following his 40-yard return that changed the game, it seems he\u2019s locked up his roster spot. The same can be said for Beaux Limmer.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cLike last week, it will again be the quarterbacks\u2019 usage. Head coach Sean McVay on Monday said that while Ty Simpson will play, he hasn\u2019t decided yet whether Stetson Bennett IV will, or what the overall approach to the position will look like Thursday night.<\/p>\n

The circumstances last year \u2013 an established backup in Jimmy Garoppolo, meant the Rams had the luxury of Dresser Winn starting and playing the entire 2025 preseason finale. Given McVay said he hasn\u2019t decided yet which quarterback will back up Matthew Stafford, it makes sense why this year\u2019s situation will likely lend itself to a different approach.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no doubt about it that in some form or fashion \u2026 I\u2019m not minimizing that Stetson needs to work, so does Ty,\u201d McVay said after Monday\u2019s practice. \u201cLast year was more of a reflection of Stetson had played so much. Jimmy wasn\u2019t even playing in the preseason and you wanted to give Dresser an opportunity. I would like to be able to figure out a way to give (quarterback Matthew) Caldwell an opportunity to play, no question. But is it going to be something similar to last year? This is a different year and so it\u2019ll probably be a little bit different approach.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA bit off-topic, but here is the power of drafting well:<\/p>\n

\u201cIn 2023, the Lions still had Hutchinson, St. Brown, Campbell, Penei Sewell<\/a>, Jameson Williams<\/a> and Jahmyr Gibbs<\/a> all on rookie deals. Their six young stars combined to make about $29 million per season on their contracts at that time, allowing general manager Brad Holmes to surround them with veterans, such as Montgomery, Alex Anzalone<\/a> and Tracy Walker III<\/a> in supporting roles.<\/p>\n

Now, those same six players are on contracts that combine to average nearly $173 million per season.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cF them picks\u201d at your peril—and yet, here we are, SB favourites.\u201c -stevens7777<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Los Angeles Rams made a bold move by drafting Ty Simpson in the first round this year,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":981230,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2079],"tags":[7,1014,58,4200,2444,2611,6,424],"class_list":["post-982891","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles-rams","tag-football","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-rams","tag-los-angeles-rams-news","tag-losangeles","tag-losangelesrams","tag-nfl","tag-rams"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/117156737417730539","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/982891","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=982891"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/982891\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/981230"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=982891"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=982891"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=982891"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}