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When the Los Angeles Rams drafted quarterback Ty Simpson in the first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday, head coach Sean McVay didn’t look thrilled, and he admitted that on Friday.
As McVay recapped the second day of the Rams’ draft, he opened his press conference and acknowledged his behavior following Simpson’s selection.
“I understand my behavior last night, but we’re excited about it. There’s different things. I’ll always be aware of how things play out and things like that. I’m very excited about last night and very excited about today. Couldn’t be more excited that we’re continuing to lead together, but every decision we make is collective and collaborative,” McV said.
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Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay walks onto the field at Lumen Field after the 2026 NFC Championship game against the Seattle Seahawks in Seattle, Washington on January 25, 2026. (Kevin Ng/Imagn Images)
“For any questions or misunderstandings that were just based on my behavior or attitude last night, I wanted to get it out of the way. This is my buddy right here,” McVay said with a smile as he reached out to general manager Les Snead.
“It was brought up because I got so many texts. It was never my intended way of coming out, but sometimes I can be a bit grumpy.”
A reporter followed up and asked the 40-year-old coach why he was grumpy.
“Well, there were other things that had nothing to do with it, like it’s normal life,” McVay said.
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Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford reacts after throwing a touchdown pass during an NFL game against the New York Jets in East Rutherford, NJ on December 22, 2024. (Adam Hunger/AP)
“The main thing was that I couldn’t be more excited to add him, but also to understand how much I love Matthew Stafford, how respectful you’ll always be and the way things can be interpreted. The demeanor would have been stoic in nature because you’re excited, but no way — this is Matthew’s football team.”
Stafford, in his 17th season, won his first MVP last year with the Rams. But despite the success, Stafford has reportedly considered retirement after each season for the past few seasons.
The 38-year-old quarterback first announced he would return for another season as he wrapped up his MVP speech with the news. With Stafford’s future seemingly uncertain after next season, the Rams got a jump on their heir apparent.
McVay said he is excited for Simpson to learn from Stafford.
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Ty Simpson of Alabama celebrates after being selected as the 13th overall pick by the Los Angeles Rams during the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on April 23, 2026. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
“I’m excited to add Ty. What a blessing it is for him to be able to learn from Matthew and to be able to come into this atmosphere and environment. When the time comes for him to have an opportunity to be Matthew’s successor, it will be on Matthew’s terms. I think that’s really what was important. I didn’t want that to ever be misunderstood, while TyV said the excitement, and not minimizing.
“Les and his group really liked him. As soon as we started really studying him, there was a piece of work that I talked about that was a good, fun evaluation. A lot of the concepts that we wanted to activate. The guy is a football junkie and plays with the timing and the rhythm. You can tell he’s a coach’s son. His journey has been a fun one.”
If Simpson one day becomes the quarterback that Stafford is, McVay won’t feel angry often.
