The Rams will have a new backup quarterback in 2009. The team released Trent Green, who was one year into his second tour of duty with the team on Wednesday in a move that saves the team $1.3 million of salary cap space.

A local favorite, Green, 38, attended Vianney High and grew up in suburban Oakville. He played in three games for the Rams last season, including a start against Buffalo on Sept. 28 after then head coach Scott Linehan had benched Marc Bulger.

But any chance Green had of continuing as starting quarterback was gone after that game, a 31-14 loss in which Green completed 17 of 32 passes but threw a costly interception. Linehan was fired after that game, and interim head coach Jim Haslett immediately re-instated Bulger as the starter.

The departure of Green, a two-time Pro Bowler who was with the Rams previously in 1999 and 2000, means the Rams will have a new No. 2 quarterback in 2009. One possibility is Tampa Bay free agent Jeff Garcia, who played for Rams offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur in Philadelphia in 2006.

The team also released wide receiver Drew Bennett, who had been a major disappointment since signing a $30 million free-agent contract two years ago. Bennett’s relieve is a wash, saving the team only $50,000 in cap space.