Goodnews: Rams QB is back

With the Los Angeles Rams, Stetson Bennett is prepared to do again what he did as a rookie. After being selected by the Rams in the fourth round of the 2023 draft, Bennett joined the team for the preseason. Unfortunately, he was cut by the team and spent the season on the reserve/non-football illness list due to a problem that, according to head coach Sean McVay, was “bigger than football.”

After being added to the reserve/non-football injury list, Bennett, 26, spoke to the media for the first time. Bennett responded, “Yeah, I’d say that,” when asked if his absence fell “under the umbrella of mental health.” The Rams have made Matthew Stafford their main quarterback for the foreseeable future, and earlier this month, they hired veteran Jimmy Garoppolo to serve as his backup.

Bennett, a two-time national champion at Georgia, stated he plans to play for the Rams this season. Offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur described Bennett as “a sponge.” Bennett might play throughout September and possibly even beyond because Garoppolo is suspended for the first two games of the regular season. “And so you kind of come out here and you’re hungry every single day,” Bennett explained. “And I don’t know, it did make me like, ‘Hey, this is … You want to do this and you want to work hard every single day and get better.'”

READ MORE:

The Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellows for Organized Team Activities are announced by the Rams for 2024.

In advance of the 2024 season, the Los Angeles Rams have revealed who will serve as their Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellows for the Organized Team Activities (OTAs). The fellowship is an extension of the team’s endeavors to fortify the NFL’s heterogeneous talent pool and offers seasoned coaches from various backgrounds practical experience. The Rams have been mentoring coaching fellows at OTAs and Mandatory Minicamp for the past two years in a row.

The fellowship for this year will start on Tuesday, May 28, and run until Monday, June 12, when Organized Team Activities come to an end.

The late head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, who brought a group of minority coaches to the team’s training camp in 1987, is honored with the fellowship name. He is inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The fellowship is intended to introduce fellows to the practices and mindsets of an NFL coaching staff while serving as a vocational tool to expand the number of full-time minority NFL coaches in the league.

The Rams’ 2024 Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellows are listed below:

CJ Cox: Defensive Lineman Outside
Jamil Douglas: Line of Offensive
Will Blackmon: Safety Canines
Kwesi Drake: Guard Position

During his fellowship, CJ COX will help with the outside linebackers. He spent three seasons coaching cornerbacks and serving as the pass game coordinator at Kent State before joining the Blazers. He is currently in his first season as the safeties coach at the University of Alabama-Birmingham. Before coming to Kent State, he played running back and linebacker for five years at his alma mater UNLV, three seasons as a cornerbacks coach at the University of Montana, and one year at Sacramento State. Cox participated in the Bill Walsh Coaching Fellowship with the Kansas City Chiefs during the previous season and was named one of the American Football Coaches Association’s (AFCA) “35 Under 35” in 2023.

James Douglas, a former NFL player, will support the offensive line while he is a member of the Rams. He played for the Tennessee Titans (2019–20), the Miami Dolphins (2015–16), and the Washington Commanders (2021) for one season each. Throughout his NFL career, Douglas participated in 50 regular season games (11 starts) and four postseason games. The Dolphins selected him 114th overall in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft.

WILL BLACKMON, who has a close relationship with the Rams, will assist the defensive backs. The ten-year NFL veteran played for the Jacksonville Jaguars (2013–14), the Green Bay Packers (2006–09), the New York Giants (2010–11), and the Washington Commanders (2015–16) over his four seasons with each team. In addition, Blackmon played in five postseason games. In 2011, he won the Super Bowl with the Giants.

KWESI DRAKE, a Jones College coach, will support the defensive line while he is a fellow player for the Rams. He is starting his sixth season as the defensive line coach for the Bobcats, and in his time as a coach, he has worked with numerous Division I signees. Drake spent sixteen years in law enforcement before attending Jones College. During that time, he oversaw a team of ten investigators and two evidence techs as a detective. After serving in the law in a variety of capacities, he left the Lee County Sheriff’s Office in 2018 saw Alabama. For three years, he started working as a part-time coach in an Alabama semi-pro league. Additionally, Drake led Beauregard High School to a state title in 2016 during his three seasons as their coach. Drake attended Auburn for four years as a collegiate player.