Los Angeles Rams · 2026 Draft · Pick #13 · (8-9)

Actual Pick: Ty Simpson (QB, Alabama) REACH Buy Jersey

Reach. Les Snead torched a premium slot on a succession-plan quarterback when Stafford still has juice and five glaring holes scream louder than developmental audition. Ty Simpson is a talented first-year Bama starter, but he was a consensus 20-40 grade — not a top-15 lock. Passing on TJ Parker, who would have plugged the Aaron Donald-shaped hole next to Kobie Turner, to draft a clipboard arm reveals a front office chasing headlines over roster reality. The fit is awful on paper. Quarterback appears nowhere on the Rams' priority list — WR, OL, LB, Edge, DB do — and Stafford signed through this window for a reason. Simpson sat behind Milroe, Young, and Tyler Buchner before breaking out, meaning he arrives raw with one real year of SEC tape. McVay's offense demands anticipatory throws and pocket comfort; Simpson's athleticism translates, but he's at least two seasons from pushing Stafford meaningfully. The Rams already owned this pick courtesy of an old Stafford-era deal with Atlanta, so tonight's capital question is pure opportunity cost. At thirteen, TJ Parker, Kelvin Banks, Walter Nolen, and Mason Graham were all on the board — any of whom plugs a starting-level hole immediately. Spending a premium slot on a developmental QB behind a 38-year-old starter wastes a rookie-contract bargain at a position where L.A. desperately needs cheap labor elsewhere. Our board had Simpson at QB4, late-first to early-second, roughly pick 28 — an eight-to-fifteen slot reach depending on the consensus you trust. Jeremiah pegged him 22, PFF had him 31, Kiper listed him outside his top-20. Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders were the clear tier above; Simpson was lumped with Jaxson Dart and Jalen Milroe. Taking the fourth quarterback at thirteen while Parker, Graham, and Banks sat there is textbook market overpay. This pick screams Stafford-succession panic, and Snead has not earned the benefit of the doubt after the Cooper Kupp trade and stagnant WR room. The Rams must hammer receiver, tackle, and edge on Day 2 or this draft becomes a disaster. Expect Snead to chase Tre Harris or Jack Bech at 46 and pray a linebacker falls. Trust tonight? No. They punted on a Super Bowl window to audition a quarterback who will hold a clipboard.

Why different: Rams chased Stafford succession with Simpson instead of the EDGE trenches fit (TJ Parker) our board projected.

Actual Pick: Max Klare (TE, Ohio State) REACH Buy Jersey

Intriguing. Sean McVay grabbed a 6-foot-4, 245-pound seam-stretcher in Max Klare when the board still offered Josiah Trotter, Princely Umanmielen on Day 3 capital, and a starveable WR2 — a luxury swing that solves a problem the Rams already addressed when they signed Tyler Higbee back and drafted Colby Parkinson money two years ago. Klare is a smooth route runner with iffy in-line blocking, which is fine in 11-personnel but redundant behind Higbee, Parkinson, and Davis Allen. The fit is awkward. Los Angeles screamed for help at WR behind Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, an aging interior OL anchored by Steve Avila, and a linebacker room that lost Ernest Jones and is leaning on Christian Rozeboom. Klare's vertical seam game theoretically unlocks 12-personnel play-action for Stafford, but McVay has historically lived in 11-personnel at a 78%+ clip. You're paying a premium pick for a sub-package piece while Trotter would have started in Week 1 next to Omar Speights. No trade — this is the Rams' natural 61st selection acquired in the Jalen Ramsey deal lineage, so rookie-contract value matters. At slot 61 you should be landing a plug-and-play starter, and the opportunity cost is brutal: Trotter, Princely Umanmielen, Jaylin Noel, and Caleb Rogers were all on the board. Picking a TE3 here when Higbee is signed through 2026 and Parkinson carries $7.7M in 2026 cap is a Day 3 decision dressed up in Day 2 clothing. Our board had Klare as a high-R3 to low-R4 value, roughly TE5 behind Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland, Mason Taylor, and Elijah Arroyo — call it a 15-to-25-slot reach versus consensus, with Daniel Jeremiah listing him 78th and PFF closer to 92nd. Trotter, our projection here, was a clean top-50 board grade. This isn't a catastrophic miss on talent — Klare is a real player — but the positional math at 61 stings when LB2 talent was sitting right there. The pick screams McVay-Snead "best toy" energy: when in doubt, add another chess piece for the offense and trust Chris Shula to duct-tape the defense. They need to spend Day 3 hammering linebacker, slot corner, and interior OL — think Demetrius Knight, Jacob Parrish, Jared Wilson range. The front office hasn't fully earned trust tonight; this was a want-pick over a need-pick, and the Rams' margin for cute selections vanished the moment Aaron Donald retired.

Why different: Rams prioritized scheme luxury and Stafford's 12-personnel ceiling over the cleaner LB2 starter need we projected with Trotter.

Actual Pick: Keagen Trost (, ) REACH Buy Jersey

Reach. Les Snead just torched a comp-three pick on a name nobody outside Rams Park had circled, and the spreadsheet doesn't lie — five glaring holes on this roster and Keagen Trost solves none of them on Day 2. We had Princely Umanmielen, Jaylin Smith, and Tahj Brooks all sitting on the board. Snead's track record buys some rope, but you don't get a developmental flier this early when Matthew Stafford is 38. On scheme fit, this is where the pick really wobbles. Sean McVay needs a plug-and-play WR3 behind Puka Nacua and Kupp's declining frame, a left guard to replace Steve Avila's interior shakiness, and edge depth opposite Jared Verse. Trost — wherever he plays — wasn't on a single major board for a reason. Even if Snead loves the traits, the Rams' cap is too tight and Stafford's window too narrow to bank Day 2 capital on a project. No trade reported, so this is straight-up rookie-deal value at slot 93 — roughly $5.7M over four years, the sweet spot where contenders should be hitting starters. The opportunity cost is brutal: Jaylin Smith would have been a plug-and-play nickel, Tahj Brooks could have spelled Kyren Williams, and Princely Umanmielen still had a third-round grade from Jeremiah. Snead burned a contender-grade slot on a player without consensus paperwork, and that's how you waste a window. On our board, Trost wasn't in the top 145. PFF didn't have him in their top 250. Kiper's last update? Nowhere. Daniel Jeremiah's top 150? Absent. So the round delta is essentially infinite — call it a four-round reach minimum, possibly UDFA territory. Market rate said this was a fifth-round flier at the earliest, and the Rams paid third-round currency. That's a process failure, regardless of whether Trost outperforms the grade. This pick tells me Snead's board went sideways once their guy disappeared in the late second, and rather than trade back they forced a name. Next up: the Rams need to spend picks 4-7 on a guard, a corner, and a developmental edge — no more luxury swings. Snead's earned credit with Kupp, Donald, Verse, and Nacua, but tonight he didn't earn the benefit of the doubt. The board was screaming and he covered his ears.

Actual Pick: CJ Daniels (WR, Miami (FL)) SOLID Buy Jersey

Solid. The Los Angeles Rams took CJ Daniels (WR, Miami (FL)) right where our pre-draft board had him — Round 6, projected R6. The Los Angeles Rams acquired this pick via trade (From ATL via PHI). On Day 3 the math is simple: when you land a player at the slot consensus said you'd land him at, the front office didn't outsmart anyone but it also didn't get cute. Solid pick at the right price.

Actual Pick: Tim Keenan III (, ) SURPRISE Buy Jersey

Meh. Tim Keenan III (?, —) wasn't on our top-145 big board, which means the Los Angeles Rams are betting on something specific that didn't show up in the consensus film grades. The Los Angeles Rams acquired this pick via trade (From BAL). Day-3 picks are won and lost on traits-and-fit calls like this — if the team's scouting department saw a special-teams role, a developmental skill, or an injury-discount, that's defensible. We don't have a board grade to anchor a verdict so we're rating this neutral and waiting for training-camp tape.