As former Pittsburgh Steelers QB Landry Jones found out in relation to Stetson Bennett, it’s not always a good thing when a young player is drawing comparisons to you. Despite the vitriol fans had for him, Jones had a decent NFL career for a fourth-round quarterback. Bennett could go on to have a decent career as well as a fellow former fourth-round pick.
But now they share one thing in common: they are the last two players to throw four interceptions in a preseason game. Bennett tossed four picks last night against the Dallas Cowboys—yet he pulled out the win for the Rams. He played the entire game, leading a game-winning drive in the final minutes. If only the game in which Landry Jones threw four interceptions went as well.
The Steelers started Jones in their second preseason game of the 2016 season, playing all of the first half. He went 12-for-20 passing for 111 yards with zero touchdowns and four interceptions. Of course, Jones didn’t deserve all the blame for all of those turnovers, most common in the preseason. Sammie Coates took the blame for two, for example, and Cobi Hamilton for another. He threw his final interception while taking a hit that resulted in a lame-duck pass.
I’ll be the first to admit that I did not examine all of Stetson Bennett’s turnovers in great detail. The general consensus, however, appears to be that they were pretty bad. His fourth of four interceptions certainly was, the others falling under similar circumstances. Bennett apparently threw his first interception on what he expected to be a “free play” due to a pre-snap penalty the officials never called.
But the Rams kept Bennett in the game, and he made a nice play in the end. That fourth interception, by the way, came on Los Angeles’ penultimate drive. Then, getting the ball back with about three minutes left, he ended the next drive with this:
The Steelers drafted Landry Jones in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He did not make his NFL debut until 2015, though, and played his last snap in the league in 2017. During that three-year span, he played in 18 games, starting five, with a 3-2 record. In one game, he started for an injured Ben Roethlisberger, who dressed as an emergency option. Jones suffered an injury early, forcing Roethlisberger to play, who won the game.
On 169 career pass attempts, Jones completed 108 for 1,310 yards with 8 touchdowns to 7 interceptions with an 86.2 quarterback rating. He later played in the XFL, throwing three interceptions on the first three drives in one game. Later, the defensed stripped him on a sack and returned the ball for a touchdown.
The Rams drafted Stetson Bennett in the fourth round last season out of Georgia, but he has not yet played. Over four seasons at Georgia—where he was teammates with several current Steelers—he went 601-for-923 for 8,429 yards. He threw for 66 career touchdowns to 21 interceptions. He led the Bulldogs to national titles in 2021 and 2022.
