This Ty Simpson Stat Should Concern Rams Fans

By Megan ArmstrongShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberSee more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.In February, Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford won the NFL MVP and used his acceptance speech to announce his return for the 2026 NFL season.Just over two months later, the Rams drafted his successor.Los Angeles provided the stunner of the entire 2026 NFL Draft by selecting Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick in the first round on Thursday night.Stafford is entering his age-38 season, so it makes sense for Rams brass to start planning for their post-Stafford reality. But it was a polarizing decision for the win-now-minded Super Bowl favorite to use their highest draft capital on a player who can't help them win the Super Bowl now. Rich Eisen relayed during Monday's episode of his eponymous ESPN show that Simpson's landing with the Rams marked the first time a team had the reigning MVP quarterback and drafted a quarterback in the first round of the following draft since the 1967 Green Bay Packers.As eye-popping as that is, another historical stat should concern Rams fans more....Way back in January, The Athletic draft analyst Dane Brugler posted on X that, while Simpson "put plenty of encouraging stuff on tape," the fact he'd only started 15 total games at Alabama was "tough" to overlook.Simpson was the backup QB at Alabama from 2022 to 2024 before becoming the Crimson Tide's starter in 2025.Brugler had context to back up his hesitancy: The only quarterbacks with 15 or fewer college starts who were drafted in the first round over the past decade are Anthony Richardson, Mitch Trubisky, and the late Dwayne Haskins.And now, Simpson.This doesn't mean Simpson can't or won't become the next face of the Rams; it just means that recent quarterbacks in similar situations haven't.The Chicago Bears drafted Trubisky second overall in 2017. Initially, it seemed promising — Trubisky led the Bears to an 11-3 record with impressive counting stats in 2018 — but the wheels slowly fell off in Chicago. Trubisky has been a career backup with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Buffalo Bills since 2021. The late Haskins, who was fatally struck by a truck in April 2022, was drafted 15th overall by Washington in 2019 and only started 13 games in his two-year NFL career.Richardson is still only 23 years old, but the Indianapolis Colts' decision to draft him fourth overall in 2023 has not aged well so far. Richardson started 11 games for Indy in 2024, going 6-5 and posting 1,814 yards, eight touchdowns, and 12 interceptions on 47.7% completion. The Colts have moved on with Daniel Jones.To be fair to Simpson — and as evidenced by Eisen's factoid cited earlier — most first-round quarterbacks don't have the luxury of developing and learning under the reigning MVP. But if Stafford has anything to say about it, the Rams won't be moving on with Simpson for the foreseeable future. View this post on XRams head coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead held an awkward, now heavily dissected press conference after drafting Simpson, and McVay emphasized that the Rams are "Matthew's team." The following night, McVay clarified that he is excited to welcome Simpson into the fold, but said, "Whenever that time comes for him to get an opportunity to be Matthew’s successor will be on Matthew’s terms."Ian Rapoport backed that up by reporting during the NFL…

This excerpt is published under fair use for community discussion. Read the full article at Newsweek.