Quarterback Carson Wentz was signed by the Rams last week. It wasn’t until this week that coach Sean McVay was questioned about the move, as the team was on a bye.
We believe that the most important question is whether this is a short-term or possibly long-term move. When asked if Wentz would stay with the team after this season on Monday, McVay responded in the negative.
According to McVay, “that needs to be decided,” he told reporters. “We were probably just happy to be able to let him into the building. We were in need. As I previously stated, we are thrilled to have Matthew [Stafford] back, but it’s kind of uncommon to have someone who has played as much and experienced as much as he has available to them. Thus, we were thrilled about the chance to let him into the building, and that’s essentially where things stand at the moment.”
It had been “out there” for a while, but the Rams had shown no interest in Wentz, until Brett Rypien’s injury prevented him from playing.
Regarding Wentz, McVay stated, “I think it’s really just a chance to upgrade the quarterback room.
“We felt that this would offer an opportunity for someone who has played a lot of high-level football to get him in here and get him kind of familiar with some of the things that we’re doing, God forbid something were to happen where [Stafford] wasn’t available. That was the basis for the choice.”
The Rams had previously talked about signing Wentz, according to McVay.
“Many factors contributed to it,” McVay stated, “but in the end, the circumstances and some of the experiences we had made us feel like, okay, let’s make that choice. Our goal was to have Carson step in and assume the role in the event that Matthew is unable to continue due to illness. Let’s hope that Matthew stays healthy for the remainder of the scenario.”
Some teams possibly had shied away from Wentz because he’s used to being a starter. Backups need to accept that role. How has Wentz done so far?
“He’s been a pro in every sense of the word,” McVay said. “Even when he came in for his physical last week, just kind of knew him just through kind of surface-level interaction but was just so impressed with how he’s approached this last week. Even just going through where he got a bunch of reps today in practice and the way that he handled it, the huddle command, the execution. I think he was just excited to be able to get into a building and be around a guy like Matthew. They both have tremendous respect for one another. [I] thought [quarterbacks coach] Zac Robinson did a really good job of spending a lot of time over the bye of getting him familiar and acquainted with a lot of the general information. He’s been exposed to a lot of football but he was a pro in every sense and we’re glad to have him in the building.”
Regarding Wentz’s purported collaboration with former NFL coach and McVay mentor Jon Gruden, McVay was also questioned. McVay avoided talking about that topic.
“You know what, I’m not sure about that.” McVay stated, “Carson will need to ask you. Although we didn’t have time to discuss it in detail, I know he continued to be active, takes excellent care of himself, and performed well today. I actually haven’t had a chance to ask him about that.”
It’s strange that McVay’s relationship with Gruden prevented it from being casual conversation. Anyway, whatever. Not only is that peculiar, but Wentz was available for months before unexpectedly signing a contract with the Rams in November.