Just when Ty Simpson thought he was running high for the QB2 spot against Stetson Bennett, things turned against him. After taking Bama to the playoffs last year, he got drafted in the first round by the Rams. Now that Simpson has a lot to prove, former NFL nose tackle Breiden Fehoko raised a major concern in his gameplay, comparing it to Johnny Manziel.

“Clean pocket? Nah, let’s turn into Johnny Manziel baby,” Breiden Fehoko said in a now-deleted X post.

This came in after Ty Simpson rushed out of a clean pocket during practice and scrambled while making the throw, which went incomplete. Simpson played very well when he had a clean pocket and enough time to throw. His 91.3 PFF grade from a clean pocket shows he was confident, accurate, and made good decisions when his offensive line protected him.

The problem started when defenders got close to him. Because Simpson had only one full season as a starter (15 games), he did not always know how to handle pressure. Instead of staying calm or moving smartly inside the pocket, he often became nervous and rushed his decisions. That showed up in his performance under pressure, reflected in his 47.6 PFF grade under pressure.

According to ESPN’s 2014 analysis, Johnny Manziel left the pocket on 76% of his dropbacks when he was under pressure during his college career. That was the highest rate among AQ quarterbacks.

Former NFL analyst Merril Hoge explained why scouts were concerned about Manziel, saying, “He has an instinct to run, but that’s a bad instinct if you have that in the National Football League.”

So, it’s pretty clear that both struggled when the pressure comes in. But here’s the difference. Johnny Manziel entered the NFL starting in 26 games, which makes him more experienced than Ty Simpson. Despite that, he couldn’t make much impact as a pro. He started eight of 14 games played across two seasons and finished his career with 1,675 yards, seven touchdowns, and seven interceptions with a 57% completion rate.

His struggles with the offense making throws from the pocket and legal problems ended his career, as the Browns ultimately released him. Simpson does have issues in the pocket under pressure, but his training camp updates are clearly showing improvement.

When the Rams held their first full-contact practice of training camp, Ty Simpson looked more relaxed and confident. He threw the ball with more power and looked more comfortable running the team’s offense. Starting quarterback Matthew Stafford did not practice because the Rams gave him a day off. That gave Simpson more chances to play with the first-team offense.

“The first-round draft pick had arguably his best practice of training camp so far, showing off a quicker release and more comfort operating the offense,” The Athletic’s Nate Atkins said. “A pair of throws that stood out in that regard were a deep completion to tight end Terrance Ferguson and an intermediate one to tight end Max Klare, with plenty of zip on both.”

Now, it all depends on Simpson how well he adjusts in the pocket and makes his position strong for the team.