On Thursday night, the Los Angeles Rams made Ty Simpson's NFL dreams come true. The former Alabama Crimson Tide starter emerged as their No. 13 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. While Simpson was the clear and obvious QB2 in this incredibly weak class, many pundits believed the Rams reached for him. The talent is there, but not everyone was a fan of the Rams taking him then.
Cameron DaSilva of Rams Wire compiled the following draft grades for the Simpson pick in his post.
- USA TODAY: C
- NFL.com: B+
- CBS SPorts: A
- The Athletic: C
- PFF: Poor
- The Ringer: C-
- SB Nation: C+
And the Hayden Winks of Underdog gave the Rams an even worse grade than any of them with a D+...
Round 1 NFL Draft grades, via @HaydenWinks: pic.twitter.com/vZ7GR2UTAP
— Underdog NFL (@UnderdogNFL) April 24, 2026
Not including PFF's ranking of poor, the average grade the Rams seem to be getting on the Simpson pick would be around a C+... The general consensus does not have Simpson at the top of this draft class by any stretch of the imagination. We also cannot overlook that fact Sean McVay was mostly on damage control the entire weekend over his questionable body language immediately after the pick.
In truth, the answer lies somewhere in between, and that is exactly what we are trying to find in all this.
Ty Simpson received mixed reviews on his overall draft grade to LA Rams
After reading through the seven blurbs DaSilva compiled for Rams Wire, these are the big takeaways to be had in understanding why the general consensus has given this draft pick a C+. For the most part, everyone seems to love the team Simpson went to. The Rams can groom him to be Matthew Stafford's future successor. The problem is Stafford is not ready to retire, and he just won NFL MVP.
For a franchise in win-now mode, drafting Simpson 13th runs counter to what the Rams should have probably done in most instances. His lack of starting experience at Alabama does turn some people off, but they do love his arm talent and believe his game could translate to the next level quiet nicely. However, everyone of these grades seems to be overlooking the elephant in the room in all of this...
Had the Rams not taken Simpson at No. 13, the Pittsburgh Steelers would have drafted him a few picks later. Simpson was not going to make it out of the first round. Had he stumbled even more, the New York Jets could have grabbed him. Frankly, somebody would have traded back into the first round to make sure the fifth-year option was still on the table for him. Nobody seems to realize this...
Overall, this feels like a B selection for the Rams, given the Steelers and Jets of it all. Simpson is the son of a head coach, one who has a close relationship with Rams general manager Les Snead from a college scouting background. McVay may have wanted a player who could help the Rams win right away. However, Simpson showed us all last season he could be an NFL starter in the years to come.
In a way, it feel like the Atlanta Falcons taking Michael Penix Jr. when they already had Kirk Cousins...
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