Sean McVay Opens Up on How Rams Decided to Use 1st-Round Pick on Ty Simpson

The Los Angeles Rams shocked the football world when they took Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. While the Rams stunned just about everyone on Thursday night, though, the decision was the culmination of multiple months of work on Simpson, according to head coach Sean McVay.

In an interview with FS1's "The Herd," McVay told Colin Cowherd that the Rams didn't come to a sudden decision to select Simpson with the 13th overall pick as they still have the reigning MVP, Matthew Stafford, on their roster. 

"There wasn’t that a-ha moment, it was a combination of the work," McVay said. "You like the body of work, and you say ‘Hey, this guy’s got the potential to develop one day into what we would deem a possible starting quarterback.’ We’ll welcome Ty into the building with open arms, but what I did think what was important for me to make sure that there was clarity on was, let's not get it twisted. We're trying to win right now, and we've got decisions for the short and long term."

Simpson only started at Alabama for one season, giving him less experience than most other quarterbacks taken in the first round in recent years. However, Simpson had an impressive year in his lone season as Alabama's starter. He finished the season with 3,567 passing yards, 30 total touchdowns and five interceptions. He also had four consecutive wins over AP Top 25 teams, leading the Crimson Tide to their first College Football Playoff appearance under head coach Kalen DeBoer. 

As a result, Simpson was widely viewed as the No. 2 quarterback prospect in the 2026 NFL Draft, trailing only Fernando Mendoza. FOX Sports NFL Draft analyst  Rob Rang gave the Rams a B grade for the pick of Simpson, calling it a