Sean McVay Reveals What He Liked About Ty Simpson’s College Tape

The Los Angeles Rams made the surprising decision to select Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft despite the fact that there were other players on the board who could’ve helped them even more this season.

Simpson is not expected to make much of an impact — if any — in 2026, with Matthew Stafford still holding things down and playing at a high level.

Other critics of the pick believe the Rams drafted Simpson too early, citing his lack of playing time in college. The 23-year-old made only 15 starts for the Crimson Tide, all of which came during his senior season.

Rams head coach Sean McVay isn’t worried about the small sample size and explained what he liked about Simpson’s college tape during an appearance on “Bussin’ With The Boys:”

“Is it a short sample size? Yeah, it is. But it’s easier to evaluate that short sample size because you’re evaluating all parts of, hey, in the drop-back pass game, you’re watching the three-step, the five-step, the seven-step. The way the field is distributed. The types of coverage contours he’s seeing in the SEC are similar to what he would see. He’s reading with his feet, with a timing and rhythm. He’s redirecting protections. He’s getting under center and throwing play-actions off seven-step one-hitch or eight-step one-hitch timing and anticipating second-level in-cuts with front-pad throws. Making a little bit of throws off-schedule and you’re saying, ‘I like this…’

“I like that it wasn’t easy. I like that he had to wait his time at Alabama and the easy thing, especially nowadays, would’ve been to run away. I like that he didn’t. They lose to Florida State and the sky is falling and they find a way to have some resolve and they get in the SEC championship and there’s a lot of good things in the midst of it. I like the way that he responded when guys would drop balls and he didn’t flinch. Or when guys would give up an immediate free-runner and didn’t say a word except for, ‘Man, where can I be better?’ Those were the things that the tape communicated to me.”

As McVay noted, Simpson faced all kinds of challenges during his only season as a starter at Alabama. He played in the SEC, widely considered the toughest conference, and had to learn a sophisticated offense that is comparable to an NFL team.

Simpson also had to navigate the highs and lows that come with being a quarterback, winning eight of his first nine games before dropping two of the final four, which amounted to the team barely earning a spot in the College Football Playoff.

Simpson nevertheless turned in a solid year, completing 305 of his 473 attempts and throwing for 28 touchdowns against five interceptions in 15 games.

McVay pointed out how Simpson was able to overcome all of that adversity and believes he will be better off in the long run because of it.

Cam Newton ranks Matthew Stafford as No. 1 quarterback in NFL

Stafford may be 38 years old and entering his 18th NFL season, but he has shown no signs of slowing down for the Rams.

The veteran is coming off his best season ever from a statistical standpoint, throwing for a league-best 4,707 passing yards and 46 touchdowns en route to his first career NFL MVP Award.

Former Carolina Panthers star Cam Newton recently revealed that he has Stafford at the top of his quarterback rankings and believes he has the “accolades to be the greatest quarterback ever.”