Sean McVay Views Stetson Bennett & Ty Simpson As ‘2A & 2B’ On Quarterback Depth Chart

As expected, the Los Angeles Rams listed Stetson Bennett as the No. 2 quarterback behind Matthew Stafford on their unofficial depth chart to begin the regular season.

That means rookie Ty Simpson will serve as the third quarterback for the team’s Week 1 matchup against the San Francisco 49ers, but head coach Sean McVay views him as essentially a co-No. 2 with Bennett, via Stu Jackson of TheRams.com:

“I’ll tell you when I decide who is going to be the actual two in the game,” McVay said in a video conference with reporters Friday morning. “I’ve talked to the players about it, but that’s something that they’re both going to continue to train regardless of who it ends up being up and who is the emergency third. I look at it as both of those guys are going to play, but you saw, we listed Stetson as the two, Ty as the three. But I look at it as the two A, two B and we’ll see how we approach the game.”

The Rams are taking a different approach with their backup quarterbacks this season. Whereas Jimmy Garoppolo was the clear No. 2 quarterback behind Stafford in recent years, Bennett and Simpson will split the scout team reps during practice.

McVay also noted that the Rams’ depth chart arrangement is fluid and could change over the course of the season:

“We feel good about both of those guys,” McVay said. “Somebody has to be the backup on game day. Somebody has to be the emergency third. We’ll see which direction… I’ve talked to those guys about it and I don’t want to necessarily say that whatever we do in Week 1 is how it stays throughout the year, but our job is to develop both of those guys. Like I’ve told you, I feel really good about both of them.”

Bennett, who is now in his fourth season with the Rams, has the experience advantage over Simpson, but the latter also played well over the summer and showed why the team was comfortable taking him with the No. 13 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

While Stafford is expected to play every snap this season, the Rams evidently feel comfortable turning to Bennett and Simpson at any point if necessary

Sean McVay explains why Rams brought back Tutu Atwell

The Rams made a notable trade prior to their final preseason game, reacquiring wide receiver Tutu Atwell from the Miami Dolphins in exchange for running back Jarquez Hunter.

McVay noted that the Rams were a little thin at wide receiver and liked the idea of reuniting with a player he is already familiar with.

Atwell spent his first five seasons with the Rams and will now look to give them a downfield threat, which they were previously missing from their roster.