Adam Schefter just poured a bucket of cold water on Ty Simpson’s red-hot draft buzz

As tends to happen this time of year, a little over a month out from the NFL Draft, quarterbacks are the talk of the town. From the moment the Las Vegas Raiders landed the No. 1 overall pick, it was clear that they’d be selecting Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza. Yet, the media is intent on drumming up a Mendoza vs. Ty Simpson debate. 

A day after ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky named Simpson his No. 1 QB in the class, another ESPN personality, Michelle Smallmon, host of Unsportsmanlike on ESPN radio, asked Adam Schefter how big the gap is perceived to be in NFL circles between Mendoza and Simpson. Schefter’s response poured a bucket of cold water on Simpson’s red-hot draft buzz. 

“Here’s the deal,” Schefter began, “I fully expect Fernando Mendoza is going to go No. 1 to the Raiders, and then, it’s really interesting to go find the landing spot for Ty Simpson. Now, I think he’s first-round pick caliber, that doesn’t necessarily mean, though, that he goes in the first round.” 

Adam Schefter crosses off many of Ty Simpson’s first-round destinations

It might be unfair to say that no team in the NFL is having or would have the Mendoza vs. Simpson debate in a meaningful way. It may even be untrue to say that no team would have Simpson over Mendoza; apparently, Orlovsky does. However, the only team that matters clearly has Mendoza No. 1, so the conversation is moot. 

Mendoza is going No. 1 overall to the Raiders, and as Schefter pointed out, it’s hard to pin a specific landing spot for Simpson in Round 1. He’s commonly been connected to the Jets, who hold two first-round picks, No. 2 overall, and No. 16, and the Rams, who still have the No. 13 overall pick courtesy of the Atlanta Falcons. Schefter doesn’t see either spot as a fit. 

“We don’t expect he’s going in the top 10 picks,” Schefter continued. “The Jets are at 16, I’m not feeling that right now. We’ll see how that plays out, not feeling that at all. People talked about the Rams. I think the Rams are a win-now team; you never know, could happen.” 

Schefter did provide a sliver of optimism that Simpson wouldn’t tumble down draft boards and be left without a home heading into Day 2 of the draft in Pittsburgh this year, naming the Browns, who have No. 24 as their second first-round pick courtesy of the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Miami Dolphins, who just acquired the 30th pick from the Denver Broncos, and Arizona as a team that could consider trading back into the first round as the Giants did for Jaxson Dart last year. 

Simpson is still likely to be a first-rounder and is clearly QB2, but after a day of feckless debate about Mendoza vs. Simpson, that’s still not a guarantee.