One of the biggest surprises from the 2026 NFL Draft was the Los Angeles Rams selecting former Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick. The move came after current quarterback Matthew Stafford won the coveted MVP award, which made it even more surprising, but the Rams were thinking ahead and selected Simpson to mold as their quarterback of the future.
Luckily for Simpson, he’s entering an ideal situation in the NFL. The same can’t be said for other rookie quarterbacks, so he has an advantage.
In an article out on Wednesday, Ryan Wilson of the NFL’s official website projects the best- and worst-case outcomes for rookie quarterbacks going into 2026. As for research, he ran a model using college and rookie quarterback data from 2015 to 2025.
Ty Simpson walking into ideal Rams situation
In the piece, he says that Simpson is entering the perfect situation for any rookie quarterback. That’s because the Rams offense is already elite.
“If you’re building the ideal environment to develop a quarterback, it would look a lot like what Ty Simpson walked into in Los Angeles,” he states in the feature. “Unlike Mendoza, who will likely be asked to play immediately, Simpson enters the league behind Matthew Stafford — and that changes everything.”
McVay is a Super Bowl-winning, offensive-minded coach, and he’s crafted a strong offense around Stafford. Not only will learning under Stafford benefit Simpson, but having an elite offense of players around him will help him succeed when it comes time for him to take the field.