Stafford Expected to Start for Rams Against Seahawks
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Stafford to McAfee: I enjoy football too much to consider hanging it up (1:25)
Matthew Stafford talks with Pat McAfee about his current mindset on continuing his football career. (1:25)
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Rams are expecting quarterback Matthew Stafford to start Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks, coach Sean McVay said Monday.
Stafford suffered a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in his right thumb during Week 8 and sat out the following week’s game against the Green Bay Packers. With a bye in Week 10, Stafford had additional time to recover.
McVay expressed confidence that Stafford will be ready to face Seattle, noting that the quarterback participated in individual drills during Monday’s practice.
“He’s making excellent progress, and we are operating under the anticipation and expectation that he will be good to go,” McVay said. “He’ll be pushing through, but we expect him to start, play, and lead the way this week.”
The Rams’ backup quarterback Brett Rypien struggled in his start against the Packers and was subsequently released during the bye week. The team signed quarterback Carson Wentz as a replacement, which McVay referred to as “an opportunity to upgrade the quarterback room.”
“We feel confident about Matthew’s return, and when he’s out there, his leadership and contributions are invaluable. However, in the unfortunate event that he becomes unavailable, we wanted to bring in someone with extensive experience in high-level football to familiarize them with our system,” McVay explained.
Although the Rams drafted quarterback Stetson Bennett in the fourth round to serve as Stafford’s backup this season, he has been on the reserve/non-football illness list since September 13. McVay previously stated that Bennett is unlikely to return to the team this season.
Additionally, McVay confirmed that right tackle Rob Havenstein and starting inside linebacker Ernest Jones are expected to return for the game against Seattle.