Stetson Bennett gets L.A. Rams preseason start, Carson Beck out for Arizona

Beck, drafted in the third round of the 2026 draft, entered the preseason No. 3 on the Cardinals’ depth chart behind projected starter Jacoby Brissett and veteran backup quarterback Gardner Minshew.

Bennett has been competing with Rams’ first-round pick Ty Simpson for the No. 2 job behind reigning NFL MVP Matthew Stafford.

Rams coach Sean McVay waited until Thursday to announce Bennett would start after speculation he could be held out with Simpson making the start.

Stafford, entering his 18th season, isn’t expected to play on Saturday — a commonality for veteran NFL starters in preseason games — as McVay looks to give his backup players valuable experience in the event they get called into action during the season.

Bennett threw two interceptions in the Rams’ recent joint practice with the Dallas Cowboys on Tuesday, but he has otherwise received strong reviews for his offseason performance from McVay and his Los Angeles teammates.

“When you look at Stetson, you can see he carries a certain type of aura, swag, when he enters the field he’s not scared to cut it loose,” Rams’ tailback Blake Corum said after practice last week.

“He goes out there with utmost confidence and his form is beautiful. Coach (McVay) has seen it, us players have seen it, him taking just a leap in being a field general, taking total command of the offense.”

Corum said the Los Angeles players “can hear it in the huddle” when Bennett is calling plays.

“He’s balled out this camp, and he’s only going to continue to get better,” Corum said. “Since I’ve been here, in every preseason game I feel like he’s balled out, and that’s all you can ask.”

Bennett, in the final season of his four-year rookie deal, has yet to play in an NFL regular season game, but started all three of the Rams’ preseason games last year and two of the three in 2024.

Bennett showed marked improvement from 2024 to 2025, improving his completion percentage from 59% in 2024 to 69% in 2025, and his touchdown-interception ratio went from 2 TDs and 5 interceptions to 5 TDs with 3 interceptions.

McVay said he’s looking for Bennett and Simpson to show “good command” in the preseason game against the Chiefs, who will not play former NFL MVP and three-time Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes at quarterback.

“Consistently making good decisions, playing within the timing and rhythm of, you know, whatever that play is that (offensive coordinator) Nate (Scheelhaase) decides to call,” McVay said, elaborating on what he wants to see from his quarterbacks in Kansas City.

“And I want to see us get in and out of the huddle, good communication. There will be a lot of different guys that will be kind of rotating in, but I want Stetson to be able to do what he’s done, and I want Ty to be able to do what he’s done as well. It’ll be fun watching both those guys play.”

McVay said earlier in fall camp that Bennett has been “playing the position at a high level.”

Rams’ star receiver Puka Nacua, recently sidelined by a minor groin injury that’s expected to keep him out through the preseason, also praised Bennett earlier in training camp.

“I think everybody knows that there’s a swagger that he has when he walks out on the football field,” Nacua said. “In the receiver room, you can feel that, and there’s a swagger and an aura that No. 9 (Stafford) has, and it bleeds into that room.

“It’s been exciting to see ‘Stetty’ go out there with the confidence to sling it, and then to watch Ty continue to ask the right questions, and then when he goes out there to play with confidence.”