Hey folks - as a member of the DawgNation community, please remember to abide by simple rules of civil engagement with other members:
- Please no inappropriate usernames (remember that there may be youngsters in the room)
- Personal attacks on other community members are unacceptable, practice the good manners your mama taught you when engaging with fellow Dawg fans
- Use common sense and respect personal differences in the community: sexual and other inappropriate language or imagery, political rants and belittling the opinions of others will get your posts deleted and result in warnings and/ or banning from the forum
- 3/17/19 UPDATE -- We've updated the permissions for our "Football" and "Commit to the G" recruiting message boards. We aim to be the best free board out there and that has not changed. We do now ask that all of you good people register as a member of our forum in order to see the sugar that is falling from our skies, so to speak.
- Please no inappropriate usernames (remember that there may be youngsters in the room)
- Personal attacks on other community members are unacceptable, practice the good manners your mama taught you when engaging with fellow Dawg fans
- Use common sense and respect personal differences in the community: sexual and other inappropriate language or imagery, political rants and belittling the opinions of others will get your posts deleted and result in warnings and/ or banning from the forum
- 3/17/19 UPDATE -- We've updated the permissions for our "Football" and "Commit to the G" recruiting message boards. We aim to be the best free board out there and that has not changed. We do now ask that all of you good people register as a member of our forum in order to see the sugar that is falling from our skies, so to speak.
Options
L.A. Rams G.M. breaks silence on Stetson Bennett, beneficial time away from football
System
Posts: 10,680 admin
L.A. Rams G.M. breaks silence on Stetson Bennett, beneficial time away from football
Stetson Bennett was “exhausted” after his career at Georgia and benefited from his year away from football, according to Los Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead.
Comments
Well that was a lot about nothing much
Gotta call B.S. on Mr Snead. SBIV made it to the mountain top. Yes CKS kept SBIV on a short leash (on the field) and read him the riot act. But he needed those guard rails to realize his goals. When you are a player you play. You love to play and you play every chance you can unless you are injured. Or you have another problem that is keeping you from playing. SBIV has another problem that is/was keeping him from playing. We would not have waited a whole year to hear SBIV has/had "UGA fatigue". That reason would not have been kept under lock and key.
All I know is I'm a Stetson fan and I am pulling hard for this young man, as I know many in Dawg Nation are doing the same. I don't care what the reasoning was for him not playing last year (none of my business), all I care about is that he is healthy and still wants to play football. I hope to see him balling out soon for the Rams! He's one hell of an athlete! But you all know that already!
GO STETSON!
GO RAMS!
GO DAWGS!
Good story, good to hear, best of luck to him this upcoming season!
Bennett owes no one an excuse, an answer, a reason…NONE. The man is and always will be a legend irregardless of what happens in the NFL. Let him live his life and see what unfolds. Lesser mortals would have crumbled. Stet carried UGA to 2 Nattys. Isn't that enough?
It's more than enough for me.
Stetson's been a DGD since he was a team leader on the scout team prepping our starters for Oklahoma.
Go, Dawgs!
SB has always been a him against the world kind of guy and I don't mean that in a bad sense on his part but it just speaks to his determinaton and his drive. As an undesized guy growing up in the early 1970's playing baseball and being a pitcher at that, I can relate to what he went through. Coaches take one look at you and make a judgment call. He doesn't fit the prototypical image for a pitcher, or in SB's case a QB. You're in an uphill battle before you even get started.
Hardly any DIv 1 schools were willing to offer SB despite the tape coming out of HS. If he had been 6'3" instead of maybe 5'11" in his cleats then he gets many more offers. THe UGA players who played against him on the scout team raved about him but that wan't good enough. WHy? He's 5'11" 185 . So, he transfers, has a really decent year in JR College and CKS gives him a scholarship offer( is that not the best thing he's done so far as coach?)
He brings SB in as the proverbial 4th QB, and told by his coaches, we don't ever see you starting. Gee thanks coach(s). I appreciate the vote of confidence! Again, he wasn't told that because he couldn't throw the football or hand one off. If he's 6'3" he never gets told that. SB didn't learn how to throw a football after he was told he would never start.
It wasn't because the coaching staff were so astute that they saw something in him and said, I know he doesn't fitt he bill, but we're going with him over Mathis or JT or the guy from Wake who quit. No, they actually believed Mathis was the better plan. It's not an exact science is it? No, SB got put in because we were losing to Arkansas and MAthis didn't look like he even deserved to be a JR College QB, muchless the starter for UGA. SB enters the game and leads the team to a victory.
Time and time again he had to prove he could do the job on the field. And every time he rose to the occassion. Just one major flub and his playing time would have been over. Coaches sayiing to themselves, "See, he's just not good enough." SB had no buffer zone. It was do or die(get benched).
If you don't think SB wasn't under tremendous pressure for most of his college career, a guppy in a big bass world, I guess you just don't remember how it all went down or know what it's like to be undersized, and have to fight an uphill battle at every turn.
Remember how odd SB's "me against the world rant" (Jimmy's and Joes) was at the UGA NC celebration? I didn't get it at the time but I think I'm starting to understand it a little better now. It speaks to all those years of pent-up frustrations of being told you're not the guy. "We'll just give me a chance and I'll prove I am." Sorry kid.
@reddawg1 "if you don't think SB wasn't under tremendous pressure for most of his college career, a guppy in a big bass world, I guess you just don't remember how it all went down or know what it's like to be undersized, and have to fight an uphill battle at every turn."
Of course SBIV was under pressure at UGA. It comes w/the territory. EVERY major CFB, contending team QB is under pressure. If they don't perform (their team's lose) they are replaced.
But like you said that pressure was while he was AT UGA. He made it. He won. Heisman trophy conversation. Drafted. All of that stuff was over. Hay in the barn. Pelts on the wall. That pressure was over.
Time to pat yourself on the back. Time to move on to the next challenge. But NOW with a completely different rep. With confidence level at an all time high. No longer the small player trying to make a name. Now a player known around the country as someone who put up stats, won and performed on the biggest stage.
Remember this was the guy that wowed his teammates as a freshman as a scout team QB. "UGA fatigue" is hogwash. Based on the last year, CKS must've propped SBIV up every week and sent him out with the pep talk of a lifetime.
Or there is another issue. The only non-medical issue that would make sense is that the Rams were trying to stash a not ready for prime time QB for a year. BUT IF that is true then the Rams willfully trashed SBIV's reputation by allowing everyone to speculate as to the reason for SBIV's absence. That would be hard to believe.
Now it becomes clear it is a cover up. The drinking issues have been numerous and well documented. When have you seen SBIV "crack" under pressure?
And, remember...that career began back in 2017. That's 6 years in a pressure cooker with very little break. That takes an abnormally high level of commitment and focus, IMO. I've seen men break under far less strain than, I'm sure Bennett put himself through, over the last six years.
What Bennett did with what he started out with in '17, is nothing short of amazing. Unlike some of these Prima Donna's, some sports fans and writers worship...Bennett actually earned the respect and recognition, he barely got. He wasn't "5-star flashy" enough for em. Lol
One thing I can say about Bennett, that I can't say about all of the Dawgs QB's...."like Aaron Murray, Bennett improved from game-to-game and year-to-year". He was a "raw talent" with unknown potential when UGA got him. Kirby molded that boy into possibly one of the top 3 QB's to ever play at UGA. I'm including some darn good QB's in that assessment, too.
I don't know whether Bennett is going to make the long term, successful transition to the NFL that Brady made…or bust like Fields. What I do know, is I'd put a good chunk of money on him making the grade this time around.
The only thing that will remove him from the game, IMO, is injury. As good as he is at avoiding contact and playing tough….he's still only ⅔ the size of some of the guys looking to crush him. That's why he's fortunate to wind up with a solid offensive unit, like the Rams. They're well versed in protecting someone far slower and less mobile.
There's no question, he needed to take a break and collect himself after the stress of his "earning" his achievements and the hectic '22 season...with Willock's death and whatnot. I suspect the LA GM knew that, long before they drafted him. There aren't many secrets out there anymore. Lil.
wished he wouldn’t have been a dirtbag at the parade
Can you imagine a rested Bennett back on the field?
@reddawg1 ...like you, I played ball in the '60's & '70's. I'm not going to get into how good I was on the baseball field. I'll just say I was the Ace pitcher and cleanup hitter.
I tell you that, to tell you this.... one year when I was 15, I was having a rough year pitching and got into a hitting slump to top it off. I was frustrated at the plate and on the mound. My arm was having the shakes. Well...I broke my left hand tagging a guy out at the plate. I finished the inning, went to the doctor and got casted up. For 5 weeks.
I loved playing ball, but there was only a few weeks left in the season when I got the cast off....and I lived, a County away from where I played ball. Like Bennett...there was no organized sports to speak of, in my small community. So, I had to go to a neighboring County to play. Which also made me ineligible to play on the All-Star Team [at that time].
So....I started playing softball with whoever....everyday....all day. [it was summer]. Lol....you know how that goes, I'm sure. Girls, guys, kids...anybody can play softball. But, if you're used to playing hardball...it's a challenge. Your timing at the plate, speed off the pitch, size of the ball in your hand...all different.
Anyway....I played softball like that for about a week. That's 6 weeks I was away from the game.
Here's the punch line....two weeks before the season ended...my coach came to our house to ask my Dad if I was able to come play that weekend. I was ecstatic.
I thought it was too late. I couldn't wait. Two days later, I was pitching against a very good pitcher that had a killer curve ball. That day, everything fell into place. I could see his curve ball spinning and it appeared to hang like a grape for me to crush, even as it broke across the plate. Everything slowed down for me that day. I had 21 strikeouts, in pitching a no-hitter and went 4 for 4 with 3 HR's.
That was after being away from the game and the stress [talkin' to yourself...Lol], for about 6 weeks. Sometimes, the kind of break Bennett got, allows your mind and body to reset and gather and collate...and put it all together. You find out, the issue was in your head all along.
I've never seen or heard of a situation like Bennett's. He's very fortunate that LA had the GM to recognize it and the ability to do something about it. If he's successful...I expect QB's sitting out a year, may become something to consider for other QB's not named Bennett, in the future.
Go Dawgs! Do your thang Stet....show em what "Southeast Georgia Boys" are made of. Lil.
@BigDawg61
Like the guys onboard the ship in the Jaws movie, we could trade some injury stories, no doubt. That was quite a day you had. Can't do any better than that! I did happen to pitch a no-hitter in a state All-star tournament just before my 16th birthday, but I didn't hit 3 HR's.-That's obscene.
Thank you, @reddawg1, this was a truly excellent recap and reminder. It actually took me back to the kinds of pressure (and occasional hate, even with lots of love out there) that this young man went through EVERY day for years, literally in front of millions... and then went out and did what many said was impossible, especially for a guy without "traditional metrics" that cause so many to jump to conclusions on a first glance.
While this is definitely not combat, I've lived in and around military folks for much of my life, including many family members. Again, while nothing like combat, it's clear SBIV was undergoing something akin to PTSD. There's only one solution to that, and it's not to jump right back into what got you there in the first place.
Everyone can spin, criticize, speculate, say "I woulda" (but most likely wouldn't-a), etc., but the big point of all this is clear to me: I'm super-gracious that a young, hard-driven underdog who gave me, my family, my friends, a university, a state, and untold millions of fans some of the most exciting and joyful football over two glorious years has had time to recover... and now is being given the opportunity for a second chance with a great program in the world's premier football League.
Succeed or fail (and I'm praying he succeeds), my family and I will always respect and appreciate what this guy did for so many of us, including the believers and the disbelievers alike.
I've never been an LA (anything) fan, but now? Go Rams! Go SBIV! Go DGDs!!!
Have a wonderful Memorial Day, all!
Man…there is nothing like being "in the zone". I know what people mean when they say that. Lol…I don't know if the brain is getting an extra squirt of oxygen, when that happens, or what.
Yeah…that was “probably” my best day ever, to that point...and, it was after a significant layoff. Which is why I wholeheartedly support what LA did with Bennett. It may have “literally” saved Bennett's career, as well as given LA their "QB-of-the-future" back, in top condition.
He “already” knew how to play QB, after at least six years of intensive study and repetition with some of the best position coaches in the biz. There would be no point having him ride the bench at 75%...when you can send him home and have him at 110% next year, when you will need him most.
As much as I HATE to say it....I'm a "Rams Fan", full speed, now. Lil
"Neither Bennett nor Rams coach Sean McVay elaborated on what led the franchise to make that move."…….It's all about potential, and Snead realizes the mountain of potential SBIV processes…..I'm thinking it's the 31st latitude they both hail from….Snead also recognized how Monken built an offense around Stet and how he and Kirby kept the stud in the corral. Snead also knows his coach…..McVay will do as good a job as Monken building around Stets positives and I'm thinking the next couple of years under Stafford will only hone and accentuate Stetson's skills…..Matt Stafford has about 4 years left before he'll enter the annals of NFL legend, giving Stet ample time to be polished and refined…..in the meantime, this "Eagle" eye will be diverted to the west coast every week in growing anticipation!
So apparently being named a 5 star recruit while a sophomore in high school, playing your junior and senior year for a high classification team that competes for championships in a state that produces tons of college football players, becoming a starter as an underclassman - and in some cases a true freshman - for an elite college program that contends for the playoffs every year and capping that off with entering the NFL as a 1st round draft pick for a terrible team that is counting on you to be the main guy to turn the franchise around AND you have to play well enough to justify your draft status and the big contract you received as a rookie to get a $150 million contract within 3-5 years or else be laughed at and ridiculed as a bust, blamed for getting your coach and GM fired and needing to find any team willing to sign you as a backup is less pressure than what Bennett experienced at UGA (entering with no fanfare or expectations) and the Rams (a talented team where he would not have been expected to play for at least 3 years)?
And the best part: lots of the 5 star guys above went through the bulk of this AS TEENAGERS. Trevor Lawrence was SIXTEEN when he got his 5th star. He was NINETEEN when he became the starting QB for THE NUMBER TWO TEAM IN THE COUNTRY. Even now as he is trying to get Jacksonville to give him a contract extension he is younger (24) than Bennett was when led UGA to their second national title (25). CJ Stroud started his first NFL game at 21. Anthony Richardson was TWENTY when he was drafted #4 overall to go from being pounded behind the Gators' terrible OL to the Colts one. And I am not a Bo Nix fan, but come on. 5 star recruit who started at his legend father's alma mater as a true freshman. Beat Alabama and won SEC Freshman of the Year … and it was all downhill on the Plains after that. Told the media he was "miserable" when he entered the portal and landed at a loaded Oregon team … only to lose to Washington 3 times in a row. Now he is the the #12 overall pick on a team with no offensive weapons, an aging defense, but has Drew Brees' old head coach! What could go wrong?
Personally, I think that (nearly) every rookie NFL QB should be "given the year off." (The NFL should create an exemption for young QBs that allows a team to carry as many as they want, and they wouldn't count towards the salary cap and also would be protected so other teams couldn't sign them - they could trade for them though - but that QB would be ineligible to play that year, and the contracts that the QBs signed as rookies would automatically roll over.) But if Les Snead is able to sell that Stetson Bennett IV was any more "exhausted" than any other big time QB it is because so many people are willing buyers.
"should create an exemption for young QBs that allows a team to carry as many as they want, and they wouldn't count towards the salary cap and also would be protected so other teams couldn't sign them - they could trade for them though - but that QB"____random
Not a bad idea....IMO. They have the capital and available talent to build a pretty good Minor League pool. They could play games on Tuesdays, or in the offseason…or, not at all.
With today's interest in recruiting services and fans' ability to follow a favorite player[s] throughout their development....there seems to be an explosion of interest in the fringe game. Especially with these on-line fantasy football leagues.
IMHO...Great idea for training, quality control and marketable to the public as a revenue source. And...possibly, a tax write-off for the Organization…if it can be structured that way. It could pay for itself, and in time....become an object of betting, fantasy football and television contracts. "A league of their own", if you will. Lol
With the right "Visionary" leading a fan-oriented marketing strategy....i think it's a win-win-win. The NFL has the resources to do it. Till now...I believe they've been leaning into the CFB Model. But, with players transferring all over the place, to the highest bidder…coaching quality is inconsistent...which reduces the preparedness, of most of the "top players/QB's" drafted, when they enter the profession. Justin Fields comes to mind here.
I like it. Go Dawgs!