Tom Brady holds the records for most passing yards (89,214) and touchdowns (649) as an NFL quarterback. And his legacy casts one of the longest shadows in NFL history. In the 2024 season, Drake Maye, as a rookie, was often compared with the Patriots icon. And now the LA Rams’ QB Ty Simpson is getting near the conversations ahead of the 2026 season. However, it is not based on stats. Rather, it is driven by the position he was picked in the draft.

“If you watched that dude tape, it was like, oh yeah, I’m picking him 13th, top 20. You’re out of your damn mind,” said former NFL star TJ Ward on the Safety First Show. “And that’s just a fact. For the Rams to pick him at 13 when they already have a starting quarterback, already have a backup, who was on a quality Georgia team national championship, and looked better than Ty Simpson in college. And you already got a guy like that on the roster, but you reached.

“This is why I see why the Rams trade all them d*** picks for players. It’s not a bad scheme if you’re going to draft like this. It definitely works in your favor. You might as well get some guys that are proven in the NFL, trade those draft picks for those guys, because you can’t draft. If this is your first-round draft pick in three years, two years, and you go get Ty Simpson, hey, he better be Tom Brady.”

Ty Simpson entered the 2026 NFL Draft after representing the Alabama Crimson Tide for four seasons (2022-2025). In the first three seasons, Simpson primarily served as a backup. However, during the 2025 season, he took over as the QB1 for the Crimson Tide. Four seasons and 31 games later, Simpson recorded 3,948 passing yards and 28 touchdowns to wrap his college career.

The Los Angeles Rams front office saw him fit for the job. Hence, they drafted him with their first-round pick. However, the decision gained quite a bit of traction as well. First off, many analysts and former players like TJ Ward questioned whether the 23-year-old QB was fit for the Rams, considering their packed QB room with Matthew Stafford as the leader and Stetson Bennett as backup. And due to this particular reason, hype around Simpson was built.

Stafford, last year’s NFL MVP, arguably stands as one of the top signal callers in the league alongside the likes of Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen and Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes. So, it was very likely that Stafford would yet again lead the Rams’ offense.

On the other hand, there is Stetson Bennett. The Rams picked him in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. However, to this date, he hasn’t played a single snap. But when it comes to pedigree, Bennett threw for 8,429 yards while posting 66 touchdowns in 42 collegiate career games combined for the Georgia Bulldogs and Jones College. He also won two National Championships and knows what it’s like to play when the lights are bright.

To overlook such a strong and seemingly better backup QB in terms of stats is what elicited the reaction from TJ Ward. And as things stand, Simpson and Bennett are competing for the QB2 role.