Brett Rypien expected to start for Rams against Packers

The Rams are expected to be without Matthew Stafford against Packers

There have been questions all week as to who will start for the Los Angeles Rams at quarterback in Week 9 against the Green Bay Packers. According to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, Rams backup quarterback Brett Rypien is expected to start in place of the injured Matthew Stafford.

As Rapoport reported, Stafford hasn’t been ruled out, but the plan is for Rypien to start against the Packers. It would be a surprise to many if Stafford were to feel good enough to play on Sunday morning.

Stafford injured the UCL in his thumb last week in the loss against the Dallas Cowboys. While his thumb did come down on a Cowboys’ defender’s helmet early in the game, the Rams quarterback hurt his thumb on the two-point conversion in which he dove for the end zone after catching a pass from TuTu Atwell.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter added that Stafford has made some progress and wants to play, but the team recognizes that it’s going to be highly challenging. This may be a situation where the Rams are protecting the player from himself.

Rypien will be making his fourth career start on Sunday. His first three career starts came with the Denver Broncos and he has a 2-1 record in those games. Rypien made his last start in 2022 against the Arizona Cardinals. He went 21-for-26 in that game for 197 yards as the Broncos won 24-15.

Rypien has taken all first-team reps in practice this week and should be ready. The Rams will have had time to put together a game plan that fits Rypien. In all likelihood, the offense will be relying on Darrell Henderson and Royce Freeman in the run game. The Packers have one of the worst run defenses in the NFL. However, it’s fair to question how much Green Bay will respect the run game without Stafford.

McVay said on Wednesday about Rypien,

“He’s done a great job just in general. I think really, he’s one of those guys that you can see he’s a pro’s pro. He’s always preparing himself as if he understands that there’s one situation or he’s one snap away from having to go into the game…I think his consistent approach is something that’s a good thing for him. I don’t really see much change. I see a guy that came in, handled the walkthrough excellent just like he’s kind of done from the jump and been really pleased with Brett.”

Behind Rypien will likely be Dresser Winn who the Rams signed to their practice squad earlier this week and then elevated him to the active roster on Saturday. Stafford will now be able to hopefully get healthy as the Rams have a bye next week before they play the Seattle Seahawks in Week 11.