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He Rams played against the Dallas Cowboys in the first preseason game on Sunday at SoFi Stadium.
Observations from a game the Rams won, 13-12, in dramatic fashion:
Quarterback Stetson Bennett appears at the end
Four interceptions, several of them a direct result of his poor decisions.
Stetson Bennett He didn’t let mistakes bother him.
On fourth down with 11 seconds remaining, he stepped out of the pocket, ran to his left and then rotated his hips to throw a cross-field pass, finding tight end Miller Forristall for a six-yard touchdown that tied the score and set up Josh Karty’s game-winning conversion kick.
Bennett didn’t stop running after delivering the pass. He continued to run beyond the Rams’ sideline before turning and staring at McVay and his teammates.
“You’re just kind of floating,” Bennett said of what happened immediately after his big play. “It was great.”
Yes, it was just a preseason game.
But it was a triumphant ending for Bennett, who played for the first time since struggling in the final preseason game in 2023.
He completed 24 of 38 passes for 224 yards. If not for a defensive holding penalty early in the game, he might have finished with five interceptions.
But when he needed to make the biggest play of the game, he did it.
“I thought I played well, but then I made a lot of bad decisions, if that’s even possible, right?” he said. “But I think in the end I’m proud that we fought back and were resilient at the end.”
Bennett was at his best when offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur had him go out to fetch passes or run for a first down on a bootleg play.
The Rams selected Bennett, who led Georgia to two national titles, in the fourth round in 2023 to replace and possibly succeed Matthew Stafford. But Bennett was sidelined last season and was away from the team after being placed on the non-football injury/illness list before the start of the season. He returned for offseason workouts, acknowledged that I had worked on mental health issues.and rejoined a quarterback room that now features Stafford, new backup Jimmy Garoppolo and Dresser Winn.
Bennett said last week that he was “excited to get back to playing football” and was looking forward to the opportunity against the Cowboys.
He wasted no time in proving it.
Bennett led a 61-yard scoring drive that ended with a Joshua Karty field goal for a 3-0 lead. Bennett completed four of five passes, including two to rookie receiver Jordan Whittngton for 43 yards.
But on the second play of their second series, Bennett’s pass over the middle was intercepted by safety Marquese Bell.
He recovered and directed a 76-yard drive that Karty completed with a 39-yard field goal for a 6-3 lead.
As the interceptions began to pile up — “occupational hazards,” coach Sean McVay said of the first two — Bennett recovered the ball with 2 minutes, 49 seconds left.
He directed a 13-play, 70-yard drive that ended with great success.
“It’s about, ‘Hey, how do you keep it together? How do you respond in the midst of all this?’” McVay said. “And how do you know that, ‘Hey, all I can do is the next appropriate thing. And that’s exactly what he did in that race.’”
Whittington quickly realizes
Whittington, a sixth-round draft pick out of Texas, showed he can contribute to a receiving corps that includes stars Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua and veterans Demarcus Robinson and Tutu Atwell.
Whittington caught six passes for 74 yards. He was particularly effective on crossing routes and had a strong showing on fourth down.
During the first trip, Whittington caught a 13-yard pass on a crossing pattern. He also caught another pass over the middle, broke a tackle and ran for a 30-yard gain to set up a field goal.
“I was very grateful,” Whittington said of his thoughts before his first game as a pro. “I dreamed of being here, so to see my name on the back of an NFL jersey… it was a lot.
“I remember praying before the game and thinking, ‘God, if this life only exists in my dreams, please don’t wake me up.’”
Starters and top rookies sit out
McVay kept established star players, other starters and those projected to be major contributors, in reserve. The same was true of Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy.
Among the Rams’ draft picks who did not play were defensive back Jared Verse and defensive tackle Braden Fiske, first- and second-round picks of the Rams. They were joined by running back Blake Corum (third-round pick).
Rookie safety Kamren Kinchens (third round) started and made one tackle. Defensive lineman Tyler Davis (sixth round) made two tackles. Whittington and center Beaux Limmer (sixth round) also started.
Kyren Williams is the starting running back, Corum the likely backup and Ronnie Rivers is a reliable third option.
But the Rams learned last year with Royce Freeman that a veteran on the roster can contribute after an injury.
Read more: Rams look better in joint practice with Cowboys, but offensive line gets sacked again
Boston Scott has a chance to replace Freeman as that veteran.
Scott rushed for 68 yards on 15 carries.
Rotational defensive players get work
With starters Kobie Turner and Bobby Brown sidelined, veteran Larrell Murchison and second-year pro Desjuan Johnson led a front that mostly shut out backup quarterbacks Cooper Rush and Trey Lance.
Safety Jason Taylor II had a team-high six tackles. Linebacker Jacob Hummel called the defensive signals and made three tackles.
Karty puts the special teams in motion
The Rams selected Karty in the sixth round, confident that the former Stanford standout could help them overcome last season’s kicking woes.
Karty did not disappoint.
He made a 28-yard field goal in the first quarter to give the Rams a 3-0 lead. His 39-yard field goal in the second quarter put them ahead, 6-3.
And his conversion kick with four seconds left won the game.
“There was a lot of noise after the touchdown,” Karty said. “I haven’t really experienced that … much in my career,” he said of the buildup to the kick. “It was just the same old thing though — just trying to get the guys pumped up, get them ready for the extra point instead of celebrating the touchdown. Making sure we didn’t run out of time on the game clock and then, yeah, you know, same old thing.”
Playing for the first time under the NFL’s new kickoff rules, Xavier Smith had two returns for 47 yards.
Ethan Evans averaged 46.5 yards on two punts.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
