ESPN’s Mike Greenberg shared his thoughts on the Rams’ controversial decision to pick Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson at No. 13 overall on Thursday night.
Simpson was projected as a late first-round pick, but the Rams decided to take him 13th in order to set up their future at the quarterback spot with 38-year-old Matthew Stafford potentially headed for retirement in the not-too-distant future.
However, the Rams do have Super Bowl aspirations in 2026 — which was the basis of Greenberg’s criticism when he appeared on the Rich Eisen Show on Friday.
“Let’s be as direct as we can be,” Greenberg said. “It’s a terrible pick. It’s an absolutely terrible pick by the Rams. It makes no sense whatsoever.
“They have Matthew Stafford at an age where he’s the very definition of year-to-year. They had the best team in the NFL last year and didn’t win the whole thing … For the most valuable asset they’ve got in this entire exercise of the NFL Draft, they got someone who will contribute zero to their effort to win the Super Bowl next year.”
According to the latest Kalshi odds, the Rams have an 11% chance to win next year’s Super Bowl. That’s the highest percentage of any team in the NFL as of this writing, edging out the Seahawks at 9%.
Simpson was the second quarterback taken on Friday night behind only Fernando Mendoza, who went No. 1 overall.
Day 2 of the NFL Draft begins on Friday night at 7 p.m. ET.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
