With the 13th pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Los Angeles Rams made a call that nobody saw coming. Matthew Stafford – the reigning MVP – is still very much their quarterback, yet the Rams used that pick on Western Kentucky signal-caller Ty Simpson.
The reaction across the NFL was immediate. Draft analysts weren’t kind, and fans were left scratching their heads. With Stafford still playing at an elite level, most expected the Rams to target a player who could contribute right now – someone to help push for another Super Bowl run before Stafford hangs it up.
Yahoo Sports’ Nate Tice handed the pick a D+. PFF and others weren’t much more generous.
Simpson, though? He wasn’t losing any sleep over it.
Speaking to Sports Illustrated, the rookie QB was straightforward about how he felt – or rather, how little he felt – about the criticism surrounding his selection.
“I really didn’t care, to be honest with you. Everybody can have an opinion, but it’s my job to take care of my business. So, the Rams took me with the 13th overall pick, so now it’s my job to be the best player I can be, the best Ty I can be, and go out there and prove them right. I don’t really listen to all that. My job is to make sure to do whatever my team needs me to do to win and that’s what I’m going to do.”
It’s hard to argue with that logic. Simpson had zero control over where he was drafted – the criticism was always going to land on the Rams’ front office, not him. His job was the same regardless: develop, improve, and earn his spot.
What he does have control over is what he does with the situation he’s landed in. And that situation, he’d argue, is actually pretty good.
“I think it’s really, really cool to, one, be in the room with Matthew, who has done it at a high level for so long, and then see it from a wide receiver standpoint with Davante and Puka. And Davante especially, because of him being similar to Matthew, but I think both of those guys are two guys who are one of the greatest at their positions. The fact that I can watch both of them at the same time on my team, it’s a big advantage for me.”
He’s not wrong. Learning under Stafford while watching Davante Adams run routes every day in practice – that’s a setup most young quarterbacks would take without hesitation. Add Sean McVay to the mix, one of the sharper offensive minds in the league, and Simpson’s development environment is genuinely strong.
There’s also the luxury of time. Barring injury or something going sideways early, Simpson isn’t expected to see significant playing time as a rookie – if he sees the field at all. That patience-first approach has worked before. Aaron Rodgers sat behind Brett Favre for three years. Jordan Love waited four seasons before taking Green Bay’s starting job and ran with it. Philip Rivers spent his first year holding a clipboard behind Eli Manning.
If Simpson follows that same path, the D+ grades won’t matter much in a few years.