Stetson Bennett IV is starting off in the NFL the same way he did for his college career: as an underdog.
The Georgia quarterback and two-time national champion was selected Saturday by the Los Angeles Rams in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL draft.
A former walk-on who transferred to junior college before going back to Georgia, Bennett helped lead the Bulldogs to consecutive national titles in the last two seasons. He was named the offensive MVP of all four College Football Playoff games he played in, including a 65-7 rout of TCU in which he tallied a career-best six touchdowns in his final game.
Bennett threw for 4,127 yards and 27 touchdowns with seven interceptions as a senior. He was named a Heisman Trophy finalist and won the Manning Award.
As a pro prospect, Bennett faced questions of whether his 5-11, 192-pound frame could hold up in the NFL. The 25-year-old was also arrested for public intoxication in January in Dallas.
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“It was a mistake everybody’s aware of. I understand, you know, why that can’t happen,” Bennett said at the NFL scouting combine. “I’ve talked to coaches about it, talked to GMs. Apologized to my family – that’s who I felt worse about. I felt like I let them down, because no matter where I go now – and even without all this – I’ve got an obligation. I’m the Fourth. Can’t do that if your last name is Bennett. And I know better.”
But amid speculation that Bennett could last well into Day 3 or go undrafted, the quarterback instead was scooped up early on Saturday.
In Los Angeles, he will serve as backup to Matthew Stafford, who is the only other quarterback on the roster.
Stafford, 35, played nine games last year before ending the season on injured reserve with a spinal cord contusion. He has attended the start of the team’s voluntary offseason program and said he feels “refreshed” from the time away.
Quarterback was a point of interest in the draft for GM Les Snead and coach Sean McVay, though it was not clear when they would make a move.
“We’ve definitely been intentional about the second tier, right, and those players that would probably be beyond the (top) four, even the fifth one now (from) Tennessee that’s talked about a lot going early, going before us, things like that,” Snead said in a pre-draft news conference. “But no different than every year.”
Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz on Twitter @MikeMSchwartz.
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