The Los Angeles Rams selected Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson as the 13th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. This draft choice, left many people shocked, while also wondering what that meant for MVP franchise quarterback, Matthew Stafford.
Head coach Sean McVay made it clear that the Rams, is “Matthew Stafford’s team.” Despite the Rams making a shocking pick for a quarterback in the first-round, Stafford was not blindsided by their decision.
The day of the draft the Rams made sure to give Stafford a call about their decision. Regardless of providing Stafford with a head’s up, fans are a little bit surprised about their pick because of recent contract extension discussions amongst Stafford and the Rams.
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Ian Rapoport: Rams In Contract Discussion With Stafford That Takes Care Of Him Next Season And Beyond
Hours before Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft, NFL insider Ian Rapoport discusses the Los Angeles Rams decision-making process when it came to drafting Ty Simpson.
Rapoport claims that general manager Les Snead is one of the people who convinced Simpson to declare for the NFL draft, as opposed to taking a sizable NIL offer from another college.
He then reassures that despite Sean McVay’s demeanor during the post-draft press conference, he and Snead are on the same page when it comes to drafting Simspon. However, Rapoport quickly follows it up that the Rams made sure to preface where the organization stands with Stafford.
They do believe there’s a real chance he plays beyond 2026.
“Stafford is the quarterback of the present, and the future,” Rapoport stated. “The Rams and Stafford are deep in discussions on contract extension that would take care of him for next season and beyond. And they do believe there is a real chance that he plays after 2026.”
Even at the dismay of many fans, Stafford’s role on the team is here to stay for potentially, several years to come. With that being said, it leaves a big question mark on how Simpson will fit in.
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Sean McVay Says Ty Simpson Will Compete With Stetson Bennett For Backup
In 2025, the Los Angeles Rams’ quarterback depth chart was as follows: QB1: Matthew Stafford, QB2: Jimmy Garoppolo, QB3: Stetson Bennett
The Rams drafted Bennett out of the University of Georgia in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Since his arrival in LA, Stetson has yet to step on the field during a regular season NFL game.
Now that the Rams brought in a first-round quarterback to succeed Matthew Stafford, you would think this meant the end of the road for Bennett. Well, Sean McVay was sure to make it known that wasn’t the case.
In McVay’s post-draft presser, he shares that the first-round pick will be competing with Bennett for backup quarterback. We can expect that training camp and preseason will be a big teller on where these QBs end up on the Rams’ depth chart.
However, Simpson’s style of play during his time at Alabama might give him the upper hand.
Rams’ beat writer, Wyatt Miller shared to X how Simpson might fit in well with the Rams’ offensive scheme.
“Ty Simpson was the second-most accurate play-action passer in the [Football Bowl Subdivision] last season (minimum 100 play-action snaps),” Miller wrote. “The Rams ran the highest rate of play-action passes in the league in 2025. The pro-style offense Simpson ran at Alabama will help him transition to LA.”
The Rams ran the highest rate of play-action passes in the league in 2025. The pro-style offense Simpson ran at Alabama will help him transition to LA.
It will be interesting to see how Simpsons develops under the Rams during the next few seasons, especially when it truly is unknown when Matthew Stafford will retire.
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