The Los Angeles Rams sent shockwaves through the football world when they selected Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
The move was surprising as Simpson likely won’t make an impact on the team this year with Matthew Stafford still holding things down as the starting quarterback.
Shortly after the pick was made official, several reports indicated that Simpson did not expect to join the Rams. He revealed during a press conference that he never spoke to general manager Les Snead or head coach Sean McVay during the pre-draft process.
Simpson has since cleared the air with Ian Fitzsimmons of ESPN Radio, revealing that he had a private meeting with McVay before the 2026 NFL Draft and both sides wanted to keep it under wraps:
“I knew they were interested, but they wanted to make it private and didn’t want people to know that they were interested. So, I had some secret meetings with Coach McVay. I just was trying to be on script and, you know, do what everybody told me and not to tell anybody. We met at the facility and it was something to where, you know, we just talked for hours and hours and it was just football. It was just straight football. And it was like a kid in a candy store, you know, where me and him are sitting there and, we’re just going back and forth.”
McVay is one of the best head coaches at getting the most out of a quarterback, and Simpson is looking forward to learning from him:
“You can tell the obsession he has for the game and you can tell the love he has for quarterback play. It’s something that I appreciate and it’s something that I enjoyed because I really enjoy playing the position and value the position. So being with him and getting to know him and seeing a little bit of how I would get coached if I was fortunate enough to go there was something that I couldn’t have asked for a better situation.”
Now that it is known the Rams had targeted Simpson all along, the pick looks more reasonable. However, there will always be some skepticism until Simpson has a chance to prove to everyone that he can be L.A.’s long-term solution at quarterback.
Tim Keenan III happy to reunite with Ty Simpson on Rams
The Rams concluded their draft by selecting defensive tackle Tim Keenan III with the No. 232 pick in the seventh round.
Keenan, who served as a team captain alongside Simpson at Alabama last season, expressed his excitement to reunite with the quarterback on the Rams.
