The Rams left many fans stunned and speechless when they drafted Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick in Thursday’s first round, a quarterback routinely graded as a day two prospect who might only barely sneak into the end of day one. But the most surprising thing about the Rams drafting Simpson is that people were in shock despite the fact that L.A.‘s interest in him was one of the worst kept secrets of draft season.
We’ve known this pick could happen for months, but because Simpson was not as universally
respected as Fernando Mendoza and other first round prospects, that meant that covering those reports was dismissed by some fans as “clickbait” of “media-driven narratives” for a “zero-percent chance” scenario.
Whether it was Louis Riddick sharing that the Rams “like Ty Simpson” or that several plugged-in analysts had mocked Simpson to the Rams or Tom Pelissero saying “don’t be shocked” if the pick is Simpson, the most common reaction to those reports looked like this, a comment left here at Turf Show Times:
“Don’t worry Rams fans the Rams would never draft Simpson in the 1st round NEVER! maybe in the 5th round. The Rams scouts have already watched his last 3 college games and he went from a 2nd round prospect to a day 3 prospect, mediocre arm strengths, poor decision making if he would have stayed at Alabama he wouldn’t even have been the starting quarterback there that’s all you need to know about Simpson.”
(I’m not crediting any of the comments to who wrote them only because I’m not trying to blow up anybody’s spot or call anyone out. This isn’t a shame post! It’s only a reflection on draft coverage of Ty Simpson and hopefully we all learned something about draft rumors for next time, including myself. However if you want me to credit your comment, I will.)
(Plus, your comments are funny! I’m not offended and neither are any of the other writers here. You’re funny and I encourage you to continue to unleash the beast in the comments section.)
As a Rams website, we cover news, opinions, and yes sometimes rumors about the Los Angeles Rams. During draft season, that means covering draft rumors, opinions, and news about what people are saying or hearing about what the Rams could do in the draft.
Just because we don’t like the idea of the Rams drafting a particular prospect because he’s considered a “reach” does not mean that the coverage of that player has less merit.
I would wager that Turf Show Times wrote more articles about Makai Lemon and the receiver class than we did about Ty Simpson. Which looking back on it now feels imbalanced because there weren’t as many signs that the Rams would actually draft Lemon as there were about Simpson.
Even so, covering rumors or opinions about why L.A. might actually like Simpson enough to pick him at 13 was often met with disdain by some fans who left comments that I think are accurately reflected in posts like these:
“I can’t wait for the draft to be over so we can stop hearing about Simpson to the Rams!”
“Can we stop with endless Ty Simpson to the Rams articles? It’s borderline rage-bait now.”
“For real this is the same continuation of last year when everyone and their mothers were mocking Jaylen Milroe to us at every corner it got from annoying to borderline asinine aggravating. Some people don’t how to quit the damn narratives.”
And who couldn’t appreciate this one…
“I’d rather have Bart Simpson.“
I get it!
There are, what, 90 days between the end of the Rams season and the start of the NFL draft, right? So we still have to fill 90 days worth of draft coverage. At the end of the day, we probably had about 8 articles dedicated to Ty Simpson, a player who—again I have to remind people of this—the Rams DRAFTED. Now that we know that the Rams actually drafted Ty Simpson, eight articles feels WAY TOO SHORT of what we should have done.
Ultimately, Simpson only took up about 4% of our draft coverage and that’s the player who the Rams actually drafted. Not just the player who they drafted, but he’s a quarterback!
The Rams just drafted a first round quarterback!
It’s a monumental occasion when a franchise drafts a first round quarterback. For many teams, it doesn’t even happen once per decade. It’s been 10 years since the Rams drafted Jared Goff and 16 years since they drafted Sam Bradford. Drafting a quarterback is a huge deal and this year the Rams did it again with Simpson, a potential outcome that we tried to give fair coverage to ahead of time despite the vitriol that came with speculating that the reports about L.A.‘s interest in him—from connecting his father to the team or a regular theme in national reporting that the Rams genuinely liked him a lot—because so many fans did not want it to happen.
I can only assume, but I bet that if Simpson was routinely mocked inside the top-10 picks that fans would be over the moon on Thursday night and that people would have welcomed pre-draft articles about the Rams drafting Simpson.
I’m not saying that Ty Simpson was a good pick.
I’m not saying that Ty Simpson was not a reach.
This actually has nothing to do with Simpson’s merit as the 13th overall pick or whether L.A. should have picked someone else, because that would make it sound like I’m “dunking” on people who said this would never happen.
I did not think the Rams would actually draft Ty Simpson at 13! If anyone should be dunked on, by all means dunk on me. I’ve been wrong about stuff more often than you.
This is only about the merit of covering pre-draft news regarding Ty Simpson and why those reports were dismissed as “clickbait” because Simpson was considered a reach, while the same amount of coverage about Lemon was “fine” because he was often mocked inside the top-10. At the end of the first round, what actually happened?
Ironically, Simpson went 13th and Lemon went 20th.
Now that we know where they actually went, it seems like Makai Lemon articles had far less merit than ones about Ty Simpson.
There were rumors that the Rams would trade up. Even rumors that the Rams would trade up for Jeremiyah Love. Those also had less merit than reporting their interest in Simpson. Kenyon Sadiq was okay. Highly-rated cornerbacks okay. But trading up meant getting prospects who were going higher in MOCK DRAFTS and were therefore more acceptable, and taking Simpson in the first round was a reach so far less palatable.
Now at the end of round one, the “never going to happen” happened.
Strangely though, we actually knew this would happen.
Here are some of the reactions to past news articles reporting that yes, “the Rams like Ty Simpson or “the Rams might draft Ty Simpson”
This is not dunking on anybody. This is not saying you were wrong.
This is a memorial service for pre-draft takes and an opportunity to reflect on a shocking outcome that was being said outloud for months.
From a February 15th article about ESPN’s Louis Riddick saying that the Rams like Ty Simpson:
“They aren’t taking Simpson, and for the umpteenth time when Stafford goes his replacement is already in the league.”
“Wasting a draft pick now on an uncertain QB who likely won’t play a down this entire season doesn’t help them win a Super Bowl.”
“(sarcasm font) Whaa? If ESPN says the Rams like Simpson……..take that right to the bank.”
“The Rams probably like him as a fourth round prospect. The Rams probably do not like him with the 13th pick. The idea of Ty Simpson as a first rounder is just bonkers. I’m sorry, but anyone talking about Ty Simpson at 13 doesn’t know ball.”
“Let them “like” any player. Doesn’t mean they are going to go all in with Stafford and then turn around and draft Simpson who admitted he’s coming out because he’s afraid of not winning the starter job at Alabama. Just trying to gin up some potential trade scenarios to ponder. I don’t see it and I REALLY hope they don’t draft him. unless he falls to the 4th round.“
“As long as he’s not one of our 1st round picks, I’m good”
“Would be a a terrible decision to draft a QB early. We can probably draft 4 starters at 13, 29, 61 and 93. They should be on DBs, WRs and maybe a S or OL.”
“This is some really early smokin’ from McSnead.”
“If the Rams truly are in “win-now” mode, then there won’t be a QB drafted in the 1st round, which likely means no Ty Simpson.“
“This is to get the Steelers to trade up with them and jump the Jets at 16 ; )”
“And? The Rams “Liked” a lot of players last Draft everyone was saying the same things last year about Rams linked to Jaxon Dart did we pick him? No. It’s going to be a defensive Draft the first 2-3 rounds.“
“I like Riddick, but he is a guy who pretends to be a real NFL GM”
Some comments were more positive though.
Blaine Grisak was a fan of the idea of Simpson:
“I really don’t see the issue with Simpson. His tape vs. Mizzou might be the best tape from any QB in 2025. Dealt with an injury over the back half of the year which correlated with his dip in level. He has good pocket movement and pre-snap coverage recognition. Genuinely think he’s a perfect fit in the offense. Struggled a bit with pressure which is to be expected with most young QBs…let along a pocket passer.“
I also have to add that SlowTightEnd said this, weeks before the McDuffie trade:
“We need to trade and pay for proven veteran defensive players who can step right in and perform at a high level.”
Nice call there from SlowTightEnd! The Rams traded for a proven defensive player in Trent McDuffie.
On February 10th, NFL Stock Exchange mocked Simpson to the Rams at 13 and we covered it:
“The Rams are not ever going to draft another rookie QB to be the heir apparent to Stafford. They learned with Goff. There’s to many veteran QB’s who will be easily available that can step in, especially given ask the new coaches in the league. Dump this whole idea of drafting a QB it’s not going to happen.”
“As an actual Rams fan (seems like there’s not many commenting on this article) I can’t see the team going after a rookie QB in the draft, much less the first round, or even at all to be honest. Mark my words, they will NOT be drafting the heir apparent to Stafford.”
“Considering the Rams were a good secondary and a WR 3 away from a SB I feel like drafting a qb in the first round would be very upsetting especially if the qb is simpson…”
“To me, for the Rams to draft Ty in the 1st round would be a total act of desperation on their part. I just don’t see that happening at all.”
“I think it would be really really really stupid to draft a QB in the 1st or 2nd round. What message does this send to Stafford?”
“Oh god. That is such a bad pick. All the weaknesses this team has and people want to use our first pick on a red shirt prospect. And the truth is that Ty Simpson might still be there in the second round assuming no team gets desperate enough to overdraft him.”
“taking Ty Simpson at 13 is absolute bonkers. Much better players will be on the board at 13.”
“Dollars to donuts, the Rams don’t draft a QB high, but make a trade for a vet when Stafford is done.”
“No how no way on Simpson. The guy is a project and at best a full time backup in the NFL.”
“Allar or Nussmeier will be there in the 3rd round. Simpson is overrated and a panic pick for anyone. CB at 13, OT or LB at 29 is the smart way to go. But knowing McSnead it will be WR & TE in the first.”
And here another positive take on drafting Simpson:
“Simpson’s best spot is somewhere he can sit and learn for a year. If McVay and co. feel like he’s the guy they want then I trust them on that.
The difference in a starting salary between pick 1 and pick 13 would give the Rams an extremely cheap QB for the length of the rookie deal, as opposed to potentially trading up to pick 1 in a future draft.“
In February, Blaine mocked Simpson to the Rams:
“This Ty Simpson BS is getting as bad as everyone mocking Jalen Milroe to us all last year leading up to the draft smh this draft class sucks point blank Les will wait until 2027.”
“Simpson would not play a meaningful down for the Rams this season. This is a win now time with Stafford. It’s time to go all in which means improving the D. This is not complex. If the Rams don’t improve the D, they won’t win the Super Bowl. If they need a QB down the road, so be it but the future is now. The window of opportunity is open this next year. Time to go all in!!!!!!!!”
“I hope ur not serious with a QB rd 1?!! I think I read Simpson has all of 15 games under his belt. Not gonna happen. I agree in certain situations that is a great move- maybe even every year other than the current one. However, the Rams ARE at the precipice of the Super Bowl right? Few and far between are the off-seasons where ur team is right there AND has (2) 1st rounders plus (9 or 10?) more picks to reload with. I would imagine Stafford giving 1 more year at or near his current level.”
I wrote about Simpson in March and the first comment here brings up the fact that the Ty Simpson story is “made up” and “Ken falls for made up stories like the Rams drafting Ty Simpson”:
“The irony of making a post about media making things up and over-egging prospects is not lost on me when the last article posted (by the same author) is yet another nonsense piece complaining about Davante Adams’ salary. Something that no one in the Rams organisation has even hinted at being an issue this offseason. If people stopped making things up then Ken would quickly be out of a job.”
“Plain and simple, there is no QB for our Rams in this draft. The thing that’s even worse is next year we won’t even have a high enough draft pick to get one of the top QB’s unless we trade up.“
“Ty Simpson is not going in the first round to any team and certainly not to the Rams at thirteen, no matter how much Dan “When I Was Calling College Games I Once Said That A Field Goal That Missed Wide By Like Ten Yards ‘Good!’” Orlovsky would like us to think. It’s not gonna happen.“
Again, I take no offense and many of the comments are quite funny. If you want to take credit for any of the comments, by all means you can go for it!
I also wrote that the Rams could draft Simpson after trading down first:
Imagine how much better it would have been if the Rams had traded down first. Now all of a sudden that scenario that was hated before would be much preferable.
“Why don’t we trade down this article for one that’s actually relevant? If the Rams aren’t targeting Ty Simpson, and the logic behind the trade doesn’t hold water, why are we forcing a scenario just to make the headline work? Let’s draft content that fits the board instead of reaching for a player nobody has in the right range! The Rams shouldn’t trade for Ty Simpson the same way you shouldn’t microwave fish at work — it’s rude, unnecessary, and everyone suffers.“
“For the Love of God when is this ish gonna end?! It’s like these writers are doing it on purpose now.”
“Is there any reason why so many writers have bromance over Simpson?”
“In reality they should be able to trade down for a qb like Simpson into the 6th rd. And also in reality the Rams are not drafting this mediocre college QB at 13”
“I have a better idea – the Seahawks should draft Simpson with their 1st round pick!”
“Here’s a better title. Will Ty Simpson still be there for the Seahawks when they pick?”
“My 2 cents it doesn’t matter how far down they can trade and draft Simpson. They don’t need to draft him or any other QB high in this draft. They need to draft players who can contribute now. They can draft a QB in the late rounds in they want one.”
“Trade back just to pick Simpson??? That would be a complete sidestep.. Trading back should be for adding additional players that we actually need or that will definitely be part of the future(OL,DL,Edge). Where the hell did the Simpson ish come from??”
“We are the Rams.. When Stafford is done, then we go get our guy.”
Then there was an article about some Ty Simpson film watching:
“”Why would the Rams use a premium pick and take a QB that in most years, would not be in ANY discussion as a first round pick?“
“IMO it’s media/pundit driven narrative designed to stimulate clicks/reads. And the Rams are disseminating false info to influence the 1st rd picks.“
“Zero chance Simpson lands in LA, he’s going to end up AZ. He’s a much better prospect than fans realize a lot of NFL scouts n analysts love him some think he’s better than Mendoza with better tape than Mendoza. Hes perfect a modern west coast offense as his skills fit LaFluers offense like a glove. I think AZ is trading back likely with Dallas back to 12th for picks 20/92 and take Simpson. He’s going to be an excellent pro QB. His skill set is similar to a young 22yr old Drew Brees coming out of Purdue.”
“If no one else will say it, I will. Ty Simpson is not going to be a quality NFL starter. He’s a backup at best, his metrics and results with an all 5 star Alabama roster were average at best. This would be a mistake. The eye test alone tells the story. Rams can’t be serious with this pick unless it’s post round 3. Look at it with realistic glasses.”
“I still feel like Simpson is a mirage. Fool’s gold. He has one year of starting and his highlight is from the Chattanooga game. When John Gruden is in your corner, you know something is off. You don’t draft the “next Brock Purdy” in the high 1st round. Those guys are a dime a dozen.“
Finally, Todd McShay mocked Ty Simpson to the Rams at 13:
“No way in hell this happens. If it does, the “win now” deal is long gone. Also, why look to extend Stafford if they want to draft his replacement this year? They are a play maker away each on offense and defense, in my opinion to going very deep in the playoffs.“
“Even if they are interested in Simpson, taking him at 13 makes zero sense. Doubt anyone takes him until the 2nd round. You could trade back and take him if that’s what you want to do. But even taking him in the 20s would be a reach.”
“It was April Fools Day 3 weeks ago.”
“I’m thinking the Rams take Trey Smack at 13”
“Just heard McShay on Cowherd, and I’m not buying it. Points like Alabama doesn’t get the players it once did, so that’s why Simpson struggled, Snead trusts his preferred college scouts and can mold him, blah blah. If Rams could pull him by moving up in the second round, sure, but teams always overdraft QBs day of, so I seriously doubt that happens.”
“I wonder if the Rams paid McShay to post this.”
“What I can say is Ty Simpson is neither building for the future or winning now. Ty Simpson is the media hyping a mediocre prospect. If Milroe, who was a better prospect than Simpson went in the third, then why would the guy who couldn’t beat him for the starting job be a first rounder?”
“Sure, anything is possible, but I believe too many so-called “experts” with WAY too much time on their blogging hands”
“Mcshay is on shrooms not happening.”
“NFL is demandin more QB hype for ratings and the group speakers will provide that hype….line them pockets”
“McShay had Sheduer Samders getting drafted 33 over all, last year… He’s a fake expert.”
“Nothing could kill the win now mode more than pick Simpson at #13. JMO”
“Rams are tryin to win the SB this year…in their home stadium…and these regurgitators on tv think they are gonna draft a 4th rd QB who is barely over 6 ft tall with zero experience, that oozes practice squad material at pick #13….lmao As Whitney Houston once so eloquently stated…”Crack is Whack”“
“I expect fireworks. I wouldn’t be shocked if we come away with Simpson. I would be absolutely flabbergasted if we take Simpson with 13.”
“I can’t wait for the draft to be over so we can stop hearing about Simpson to the Rams!”
“Exactly….this is nothing but madeup hype on Simpson. The NFL needs QB hype to keep peoples attention.”
“Seahawk and Niner fans would LOVE it if the Rams drafted Simpson with the 1(13) pick!”
“Writers getting desperate!”
“They know they only have a few days of clicky time left cuz after the draft the NFL news really nose dives for a couple of months. JB can always bring back up Stafford spinal replacement surgery and guaranteed retirement again lol”
For what it’s worth, I thought this post all the way back in January was interesting. They called it immediately after Ty Simpson declared for the draft!
Reddit post about Simpson declaring:
Now it is Ty Simpson time.
The Rams did draft Ty Simpson and he will sit behind Matthew Stafford for one year, maybe two, maybe three. It’s not what most of us expected even though the Rams kept telling us in no uncertain terms that it was going to happen.
