{"id":643183,"date":"2026-05-01T17:35:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T17:35:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/643183\/"},"modified":"2026-05-01T17:35:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T17:35:09","slug":"nfl-execs-agree-with-rams-decision-to-draft-ty-simpson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/643183\/","title":{"rendered":"NFL Execs Agree With Rams\u2019 Decision to Draft Ty Simpson"},"content":{"rendered":"

When the Los Angeles Rams drafted quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, it certainly took the NFL world by surprise<\/a>. It\u2019s not often that a team that just lost in the NFC Championship Game is drafting 13th overall.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With the Rams in a perceived \u2018win now\u2019 mode<\/a>, many expected them to draft a player who could help Matthew Stafford and the current roster. Offensive weapons Makai Lemon and Kenyon Sadiq were common targets for the Rams in media mock drafts.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ever since the Rams took Simpson, the pick has dominated conversations in the media. How could a team that was so close to potentially winning the Super Bowl punt on the 13th overall pick and not take a player that can contribute now?\u00a0<\/p>\n

NFL Executives See the Pick Differently<\/p>\n

The Simpson pick, along with the Rams\u2019 draft in general, has been largely criticized in the media<\/a>. However, executives around the league are looking at it differently. The Athletic\u2019s Mike Sando<\/a> recently asked coaches and executives around the league what they thought of each team\u2019s draft. Said one executive on the Rams drafting Simpson,\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe tight end (Kenyon Sadiq) upgrades them, but not significantly. Lemon has a feel for the game and can do some of the underneath things, but at some point, they do need to think about their future, just like every team.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is a case where multiple things can be true at the same time. The Rams aren\u2019t just trying to win now, but also trying to sustain success<\/a>. When the Rams went all-in for their Super Bowl run in 2021, it was thought that the bottom would fall out and they would face a multi-year, major rebuild.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Following the 2022 season, many would have thought it was more likely that Stafford would retire within the next three seasons than win MVP. While they had one down year, they\u2019ve been in the playoffs every season since.<\/p>\n

Coming into the offseason, the priority for the Rams was rebuilding the cornerback room. They accomplished that in free agency by trading for Trent McDuffie and signing Jaylen Watson. The Rams took a win now approach in free agency and then focused on filling future holes in the draft as most teams should. In its purest form, the draft is meant as a tool to build for the future. The concept of \u2018win now\u2019 or \u2018all in\u2019 and the draft can\u2019t co-exist.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy to compare what the Rams did to the Packers in 2020 when they drafted Jordan Love. After making the NFC Championship game, the Packers drafted Love instead of helping Rodgers. However, unlike the Packers that offseason, the Rams had financial flexibility to add to the defense, which was the Achilles heel for most of the season. The Packers didn\u2019t have the ability to invest a lot of money into one player. However, the Rams were able to trade for and extend McDuffie while also signing his teammate. They were also able to keep Kam Curl who played an important role at safety.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Rams were able to invest in the \u2018now timeline\u2019 with the additions of McDuffie and Watson, which allowed them to focus on the \u2018future timeline\u2019 in the draft.<\/p>\n

Rams Had ‘Genius’ Plan for Simpson<\/p>\n

At the end of the day, if the Rams are able to compete for another Super Bowl and Simpson works<\/a> out, they will be seen as geniuses. As another executive said, \u201cIf they planned this to play out the way it did, it was genius.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Simpson does have some athletic limitations, he also couldn\u2019t be going to a better situation<\/a>. \u201cMcVay will get everything there is to get from that kid,\u201d a coach said. \u201cYou put a good enough team around him, he can get you a little ways.\u201d<\/p>\n

To get the most discussion out of the draft, the media has to talk about it as this hig- stakes part of the offseason. That\u2019s not to say that the draft doesn\u2019t matter, but those in the league have to look at the draft in terms of who is going to be on the roster in 3-5 years.Those are two vastly different lenses. For fans and the media, it\u2019s hard to care about what\u2019s going to happen in that timeline while what happens now is the only thing that impacts us.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s impossible to know immediately whether or not the Rams made the right decision by taking\u00a0<\/p>\n

Simpson. However, the reactions of the media and those in the league are on two completely different sides of the spectrum.<\/p>\n

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