The Los Angeles Rams made one of the more surprising picks in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft, as they selected Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett with the No. 128 overall pick. The back-to-back national champion will head to L.A. to back up Matthew Stafford, and develop under Sean McVay.
The odds may be significantly stacked against Bennett at the NFL level, but you can't argue with his production in college. Bennett threw for 56 touchdowns and 14 interceptions over the past two seasons, and proved he was a winner despite the question marks. He turns 26 in October and is not a physical specimen at 5-foot-11, 192 pounds, but McVay is one of the best offensive-minded head coaches in the game. This is a very intriguing landing spot for Bennett.
How does Bennett stack up as an NFL Draft prospect? What are his strengths and weaknesses, and which teams would represent the best fit for the Georgia quarterback? Let's dive in.
Stetson Bennett draft profile
- Age: 25
- Hometown: Atlanta
- CBS Sports prospect ranking: No. 294 overall | No. 12 QB | 67.05 rating (Role player)
- Grade: C -- "Overachiever in college. Arm talent isn't brutal and is a quality athlete. Had a ridiculously comfy situation at Georgia. Accuracy is solid but was rarely pressured in college and has some ugly under-pressure reps. Older prospect too." -- Chris Trapasso
NFL comparison
Scouting report
We need to start where every NFL Draft prospect profile starts: the measurables. The combine will ultimate confirm or deny Bennett's height and weight, but he's listed at 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds, clearly miles away from the ideal modern-day quarterback physique.
For apt perspective on Bennett's size, Brock Purdy measured in at nearly 6-1 and 212 pounds at last year's combine. By NFL size standards at the quarterback position, Bennett is tiny.
Then there's, of course, the age factor, which you've heard about since probably last season when Bennett took a secure grasp of Georgia's starting quarterback job. He'll be 26 years old in October. Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk offered this gem during the Bulldogs' throttling of TCU in the national title:
Stetson Bennett is older than five of the starting quarterbacks who led their teams to the NFL playoffs this season. Jalen Hurts, Brock Purdy, Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence and Tua Tagovailoa are all younger than the 25-year-old Bennett.
— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) January 10, 2023
For more remarkable, age-related Bennett nuggets, I suggest typing "Bennett older than" into the Twitter search bar. Even being fully aware of how old he is, you're bound to come across a tweet or two that leave you astonished.
You may be asking yourself -- why does his age matter? Here's the (justified) thinking: At 25, he is much more advanced in every aspect than 99.99% of his competition at Georgia this season. Also, the age limits his upside at the next level because instead of practicing, playing, and developing his game against others his age (professionals), Bennett mostly faced 18 to 22-year-olds during the 2022-23 campaign.
Despite his age, it's not as if he started 50-plus games in college -- only 32 to be exact. Those starts did come under offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who has NFL offensive coordinator experience.
Those are the objective facts about Bennett as he enters the NFL.
Strengths
Bennett is very patient in the pocket. He demonstrated steadfast trust in his offensive line -- and rightfully so -- especially in 2022. He was only pressured on 18.8% of his dropbacks. Related to that play style, Bennett is willing to glide through his progressions, and full-field reads are not beyond him.
Monken's offense was astutely designed to give Bennett a sensible order at which to get through his reads, and he often did so before ripping a strike at the intermediate level. At times, he was a little too comfy in the pocket, which frequently led to him taking massive, avoidable shots. Bennett showed immense toughness in college, and while the ability to bounce back from a huge hit used to be a shiny badge of honor for quarterback prospects -- and probably still is to some teams -- most would advise against them at the next level.
When he needed to operate outside the pocket, Bennett was plenty capable. Designed rollouts were a staple of Monken's attack, and Bennett demonstrated good ability to throw on the run with quality zip. Bennett's not a statue, either. There's some ad-libbing flair to his game -- some twitch to elude a defender in last-resort scenarios.
At the intermediate level is where Bennett throws with the most accuracy and assertiveness, even through layers of coverage. He also loves the wheel route down the sideline and has a noticeably snappy release.
Weaknesses
Bennett's arm is not brutal. By NFL standards, it'll be average. There aren't many times on film when Bennett showed he can really drive a ball through a super-tight window or stretch a defense vertically more than 20 or so yards. His tight, textbook release gets rid of the ball in a hurry, which helps alleviate some of the drawbacks of his weaker arm strength, but let's just say Bennett will not be asked to make many out routes toward the sideline from the far hash in the NFL.
For as much as a super-sturdy offensive line helped the Bulldogs win two-straight national championships, it didn't help Bennett learn how to calmly deal with and combat pressure for the next stage of his career. Against Missouri in 2022, the Tigers were ultra-aggressive getting after Bennett and were successful all contest; he looked completely out of sorts for most of the game. Against Florida, a team that could come close to matching Georgia athletically down the field, Bennett's downfield accuracy and lack of arm talent were clearly apparent. While he was probably called "sneaky athletic" 400 times during his collegiate career, Bennett won't be an improvisational, scramble-based type in the NFL.
He's not that kind of physical specimen. Bennett also threw to an insane amount of open targets in college, and his stats were padded by a plethora of screens every game.
