The dumbest narrative being used after the Rams drafted Ty Simpson is that L.A. “doesn’t need anybody” and therefore had the luxury to use their first pick on a quarterback who by design won’t play for at least a year.
Every team could use more help, including teams that reached the Super Bowl or almost reached the Super Bowl last season. Even if those teams already added a former All-Pro cornerback and doubled down on their biggest need in free agency with a big signing. The Rams are no exception to the rule that a team is never “one player away” from winning the Super Bowl, so potentially L.A. could have helped their case next season by drafting someone other than Simpson.
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However, that works both ways: If the Rams were not one player away from the next Super Bowl, then taking a really big swing on a quarterback isn’t necessarily hurting their chances either.
Head Coach Sean McVay recognized that aspect to the decision, which is why the smartest thing that anyone has said about drafting Simpson is his comment to Colin Cowherd that the Rams have won the Super Bowl and then only won five games the next season.
Stop putting the Rams in the Super Bowl already. That’s hubris and it certainly will not help L.A. reach the Super Bowl next season if they think it’s already a done deal.
“I understand the narrative from people (who say) ‘You were one play away.‘ Well here’s what I would tell you: If you could’ve guaranteed me that us taking a great player like (Makai) Lemon or another skill player would have ensured us (the Super Bowl), you’re damn right that’s what we would’ve done. But that’s not how it works.
“Every single year is a new year. You’ve got to come together as a team. I’ve been a part of teams where we go to the Super Bowl and next year we win 5 games. Or the next year we win 9 games. So let’s not kid ourselves that you just place yourself back into the NFC Championship. You earn everything.“
The Rams won the Super Bowl in 2021 and then despite attempting to address needs by signing Bobby Wagner and Allen Robinson in free agency, L.A. totally fell apart in 2022 and finished 5-12.
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The 2026 Rams are not immune to injuries either.
Ironically, L.A.’s 2022 draft was kind of excellent with late picks like Kyren Williams and Quentin Lake. But they weren’t of much help in 2022.
Go back to 2018 and the Rams reach the Super Bowl with Jared Goff in McVay’s second season. Cut to 2019 and the Rams go 9-7 and miss the playoffs.
For what it’s worth, the Rams did not have a first round pick in 2019 or 2022. They were busy swinging trades, including the lack of a first round pick in 2022 because they used it on a quarterback (Stafford).
If McVay thought that it was okay to draft Ty Simpson because the Rams are already guaranteed a trip to the playoffs, that would have shown cracks in the L.A. franchise and that they have not learned lessons from their past offseason mistakes. The fact that McVay is leading with the point that the Rams could be a bust next season shows that the head coach knows that next season’s success is not guaranteed.
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Which is why the Rams drafted Ty Simpson. Not because they’re already set, but because he thinks what they do in the draft this year kind of doesn’t matter for next season.
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