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Well, it certainly looks like the Los Angeles Rams have found their successor Matthew Stafford.
In one of the statement picks on Night 1 of the 2026 NFL Draft, the Rams selected Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th pick, a move that presumably makes him the heir apparent to the 38-year-old Stafford, who is the reigning NFL MVP.
Did the Rams, who reached the NFC Championship Game last season, make a mistake by not drafting a player who would start over? Colin Cowherd, for example, sees the reasoning in the Rams taking Simpson.
“I don’t love Ty Simpson. I think it’s a reach? Yeah, but you can’t get Ty Simpson in the second or third round this year, and the Rams will be at the bottom of the first round next year,” Cowherd said on Friday’s edition of “The Herd” about the Rams drafting Simpson. “They could win the Super Bowl; they’ll draft No. 31 or 32. How many picks would it take to get a top-five quarterback next year? That’s the question because next year, you’re crossing your fingers that Stafford doesn’t get banged up. You’re crossing your fingers that he doesn’t have back problems. A lot of the best quarterbacks, even the young ones, get hurt, so if you’re a Super Bowl team, it’s important to have a high-level backup…
“I would have taken an offensive tackle, but this is an organization that gets wide receivers in the fifth round, Puka Nacua, and in the third round, Cooper Kupp. They went and got Jordan Whittington in the sixth round; he is, at worst, a No. 4 receiver.”
Los Angeles had the 13th pick as a result of a 2025 NFL Draft late night trade with the Atlanta Falcons. Meanwhile, the Rams traded the 29th pick to the Kansas City Chiefs as part of a deal to acquire cornerback and 2023 All-Pro Trent McDuffie in March.
After serving as the backup to Bryce Young (No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft) and Jalen Milroe (the Seattle Seahawks’ third-round pick in 2025) from 2022 to 2024, Simpson earned the starting nod for the Crimson Tide in 2025. In Simpson’s lone season as Alabama’s starting quarterback, he totaled 3,567 passing yards, 28 passing touchdowns, five interceptions and a passer rating of 145.2, while completing 64.5% of his passes.
Simpson and the Crimson Tide made the College Football Playoff, defeating the Oklahoma Sooners on their home turf in the first round before losing to the Indiana Hoosiers in the quarterfinal round.
“The real winner is Ty Simpson,” Cowherd said. “He gets [Rams head coach] Sean Mc Vay [and] You don’t have to play for two years in that culture. Ty Simpson, you couldn’t land in a better place. McVay took Baker Mayfield with one practice and Baker Mayfield was outstanding with one practice. this child [Simpson] He will have 300 practices and about six preseason games before he can take a significant snap in the NFL. “It’s just not the worst thing in the world.”
As for Stafford’s 2025 MVP campaign, he led the NFL with 4,707 passing yards and 46 passing touchdowns in the regular season, while posting a career-high 109.2 passer rating and throwing just eight interceptions. He then led the sport with 936 passing yards and six passing touchdowns in three postseason games. Stafford has one year left on his current contract.
As for the rest of the 2026 NFL Draft, the Rams have picks Nos. 61, 93, 207, 232, 251 and 252.
