The Rams have been linked to quarterbacks in the draft over the past few years but the timing has never been right for Sean McVay’s team and that appears to be the case again in 2026 with Fernando Mendoza as the only projected top-10 pick. But the Ringer’s Todd McShay went there, mocking Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson to the L.A. Rams at pick 13:
“I’m not saying it’s going to happen, but I think Ty Simpson goes earlier than expected on Thursday and I know that the Rams think extremely highly of him.
Regardless, I think Les Snead is up to something bigger than sitting at 13 and taking a WR—I’m expecting some kind of fireworks.“
This pick would stun the NFL and the draft community, but a few scant analysts have been trying to push the Ty Simpson narrative for weeks and it appears that McShay is joining that herd of believers.
Could the Rams really be “extremely high” on a college quarterback with 15 career starts and very mediocre results in the second half of 2025?
The Rams do not necessarily need a successor to Matthew Stafford this soon either. Les Snead is vocal about the fact that L.A. is working on an extension for Stafford and that it will get done soon, which lines up with expectations and recent history. Even if Stafford’s extension is just to bring down his cap number again, there’s no reason to think he couldn’t play 2-3 more years, at least.
Simpson has only played 15 games in the last four years. Imagine if he has zero starts in the next three years.
Even so, Todd McShay went there and mocked Simpson to the Rams at 13 anyway, the highest the quarterback has gone in any major mock draft. Does he know something we don’t?