matthew stafford

Ty Simpson did not make any jaw-dropping plays.

He also did not make any major errors.

So call it a quiet, workmanlike beginning for the 13th player taken in the NFL draft, a quarterback the Rams ostensibly chose to become Matthew Stafford’s heir apparent.

On Sunday, in the Rams’ first training camp practice, Stafford was held out as part of the plan to limit his reps, putting all eyes on Simpson and fourth-year pro Stetson Bennett as they began their competition to back up the reigning NFL most valuable player.

With Stafford, 38, back for an 18th season, the Rams are favored to win the Super Bowl.

But with Jimmy Garoppolo enjoying retirement — probably until an NFL team in desperate need comes calling — the Rams require a capable backup should something befall Stafford, who remains the most important player on a star-studded team favored to win Super Bowl LXI at SoFi Stadium.

Nate Scheelhaase, the Rams’ first-year offensive coordinator, praised Bennett and Simpson.

“We require so much of those guys, from what we do with formations with motions, with adjustments that they’re going to make before the ball is even snapped,” Scheelhaase said. “And so, if you can’t get that right, it’s going to be hard to get anything right post snap.

“So that’s the starting point. That’s the foundation.”

Rams quarterback Ty Simpson prepares to take a snap in training camp at Loyola Marymount on Sunday.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Last season, with Stafford sidelined throughout camp because of a back issue, Bennett took second-team reps behind Garoppolo.

Bennett has never taken a regular-season snap for the Rams, who selected him in the fourth round of the 2023 draft after he led Georgia to two national titles.

“He competes,” Scheelhaase said. “And I think anybody enjoys playing with a quarterback who competes, who’s going to throw it all in there, and that’s the mentality he has. … That’s something that’s been kind of his calling card.”

Bennett completed several passes to receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams and running back Kyren Williams.

He also was on the wrong side of the play of the day.

Bennett’s deep pass for Adams along the left sideline was tipped by new cornerback Jaylen Watson and intercepted by safety Kamren Kinchens.

Rams quarterback Stetson Bennett, left, twirls a football in front of quarterback Ty Simpson at training camp on Sunday.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Simpson started only 15 games for Alabama, but the Rams apparently saw enough to determine he was worthy of using their highest pick since selecting quarterback Jared Goff No. 1 overall in 2016.

On Sunday, Simpson completed several short passes. His deepest attempt, for tight end Terrance Ferguson, was broken up by cornerback Cam Lampkin.

Bennett and Simpson will continue to compete during 10 more training camp workouts, preseason practices — including joint practices with the Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints — and preseason games against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Saints and the Chargers.

On Monday, in keeping with coach Sean McVay’s stated plan to have Stafford practice in the second and fourth practices of each four-day block, the starting quarterback will practice for the first time.

Etc.

Offensive lineman Justin Dedich was placed on the non-football injury list. Dedich, a third-year pro who played at USC, started six games last season. … Second-year running back Jarquez Hunter broke off a run for a long gain.

The Rams were six yards from the Super Bowl.

The Rams’ celebrated young defense needed only to smother immobile Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold deep in his territory in the final five minutes to regain possession and have a real shot at winning last season’s NFC championship.

They couldn’t touch him.

For more than four minutes Darnold drove downfield, connecting on three of four passes, baffling the pass rushers, bleeding the clock, and by the time the Seahawks finally gave the ball back, the Rams had only 25 seconds to live.

Final score: Seahawks 31, Rams 27.

Final verdict: The Rams needed a closer.

The Rams needed somebody to chase Darnold into submission the way Aaron Donald once famously chased down Joe Burrow in the final seconds of Super Bowl LVI.

The Rams needed a closer the way the Dodgers needed Edwin Díaz.

The Rams needed … Myles Garrett?

Are you kidding me? They got him? He now plays for them?

The Rams needed an edge rusher and they acquired an edge destroyer? The Rams needed a veteran defensive lineman and they acquired a one-man defensive line?

The Rams needed a closer and here comes Mariano Rivera?

It’s all true. It’s hella crazy. It’s so Rams.

Myles Garrett points before a game between the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers on Dec. 28.

(Jason Miller / Getty Images)

In their first blockbuster deal since the last one won them a Super Bowl — remember Jared Goff for Matthew Stafford? — the Rams pulled off another heist Monday in acquiring two-time defensive player of the year Myles Garrett from the Cleveland Browns for younger defensive star Jared Verse and multiple draft picks.

The Rams will miss the inspirational Verse, and one of those draft picks is a 2027 first rounder, and they’re once again dangerously mortgaging the future but … c’mon.

It’s Myles Garrett, people.

He treats quarterbacks the way Rams general manager Les Snead treats draft picks.

Crumple, discard, next.

He took what Deacon Jones invented and has done it better than anyone in history.

He’s a Fearsome Onesome.

Considering where he ranks in NFL history, the Browns just gave him away. Thank you, Cleveland. While you’re at it, can you take back LeBron?

Last season Garrett, who is still only 30, set the NFL’s single-season record for sacks with 23. He also owns the NFL record with six straight seasons of at least 12 sacks.

His career is filled with monster moments. In one game he had five sacks. In another game he had nine tackles, two sacks, two forced fumbles and a blocked field goal. In one season he had an NFL record 33 tackles for loss.

He’s also been the subject of a monster suspension, when the NFL kicked him out for the six remaining games of the season in 2019 after he pulled the helmet off Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph and swung it at him, hitting him in the head.

Garrett later apologized while accusing Rudolph of precipitating the fight with a racial slur. Garrett’s claims were never proven, and he quietly rejoined the Browns for the 2020 season.

He’s not known for violence except if you’re holding a football. He’s not known for taking any plays off, even though he was so unhappy he requested a trade out of Cleveland. He’s largely stayed off the gossip pages, an absence which is about to end as he is dating Los Angeles local and Olympic gold medalist Chloe Kim.

In all, Garrett is the one sweetheart of a player the Rams needed to complete their preparation for next Valentine’s Day 2027 Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium.

Matthew Stafford coming back? Check. He signed a contract extension.

Secondary help? Check. They added newly acquired All-Pro Trent McDuffie and his former Kansas City Chiefs running mate Jaylen Watson.

Nearly every other important player returning from a team that was arguably football’s best until that nail-biting loss to the eventual champion Seahawks? Check.

To all this, adding arguably the greatest edge rusher in history? Checkmate.

The Rams will miss Verse. The fans loved him, his teammates loved him more, and he was such a force after only two seasons he was considered the heir apparent to the retired Donald.

Two seasons ago he was the NFL’s defensive rookie of the year and last season he was widely lauded for his 7½ sacks.

But, um, Garrett had more than three times that many.

This sort of deal is what the Rams do when they think they are close to a championship. This is why they have become one of Los Angeles’ two most admired sports franchises.

They go for it. They push all their chips to the middle and they go for it. They realize this town won’t settle for anything less than championship effort so they go for it.

Rams general manager Les Snead walks on the field before a game between the Rams and New Orleans Saints at SoFi Stadium in November.

(Kyusung Gong / Associated Press)

Some football executives are wary of criticism for trading draft picks. Snead wears T-shirts cursing those picks. Some football executives plan for the distant future. With the support of owner Stan Kroenke, Snead never looks past the next Sunday.

Way back when, some folks wondered about the wisdom of trading young and popular Goff and three prime draft picks for aging Stafford in March 2021. But the Rams knew Stafford was the closer they needed to win a Super Bowl.

And, yeah silly, they won the next Super Bowl.

In that way, this is much of the same deal. The Browns realize they’re not winning anything immediately and want to build for the future. The Rams were all too happy to give them that future for the Browns’ present.

And what a present Garrett will be, the gift that keeps on crushing, the crown jewel of a revamped defense that should make the Rams the preseason favorites to unseat the defending Super Bowl champions.

One of whom is undoubtedly listening.

Sam Darnold, you there?

Matthew Stafford is a master at reading defenses.

The Rams star quarterback manipulates opposing players with his eyes. He knows what he sees.

So the reigning NFL most valuable player can easily anticipate, recognize and digest why moves — on or off the field — are made.

Which brings us to the Rams’ decision to select former Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th pick in the NFL draft.

“I understand where the team’s coming from,” Stafford, 38, told reporters last week in his first public comments about a move that stunned many. “Listen, I’m not 25 years old and I get that, so we’re doing everything we can to be as good a football team as we can for now, for the future, for all of it.”

That doesn’t mean Stafford was thrilled about general manager Les Snead and coach Sean McVay spending a first-round pick on his heir apparent.

This, however, is not the San Francisco 49ers trading for Steve Young with Joe Montana on the roster.

But the Rams bypassed an opportunity to give Stafford and an already loaded roster another weapon such as former USC receiver Makai Lemon, who might have provided immediate impact to help them reach and win Super Bowl LXI in February at SoFi Stadium.

Because the Rams showed five years ago that going all in and winning a Super Bowl was worth it, regardless of the perceived and real costs down the road.

Regardless, the Rams are considered among the favorites to return to the Super Bowl for the first time since Stafford led them to victory in Super Bowl LVI at SoFi Stadium.

Like they did before and during that 2021 season, the Rams have done almost everything possible to ensure that owner Stan Kroenke can once again bask in the glory of winning a Super Bowl in the stadium he built.

After losing last season’s NFC championship game, the team quickly signed McVay and Snead — who were entering the final years of their contracts — to long-term extensions.

Then they improved their roster’s main weak spot by trading for All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie, and signing cornerback Jaylen Watson — both of whom played on two Super Bowl championship teams with the Kansas City Chiefs.

On May 21, they signed Stafford to a one-year, $55-million extension that could keep him with the team through 2027.

Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford and coach Sean McVay talk during practice on Thursday.

(Jayne Kamin-Oncea / Associated Press)

Whether the 17-year veteran and reigning NFL most valuable player plays beyond 2026 remains to be seen.

But McVay is happy that the future hall of famer will be leading the offense.

“It’s great to be able to have that taken care of,” McVay said in his first news conference with local reporters since April 24, the day after the Rams drafted Simpson.

McVay had spent the previous availability explaining the reason for his somber and dour countenance during an awkward news conference the night before. McVay said he was trying to be respectful of Stafford’s status as the team leader, and that a personal situation also had affected his demeanor.

On the night the Rams drafted Simpson, McVay said he had spoken with Stafford beforehand. When asked what he told Stafford, McVay said, “I’ll keep that between us.”

Last week, when asked about his discussion with McVay, Stafford said, “I’m not going to get in too much to what our conversation was. I appreciate him talking with me about those kinds of things. We have constant dialogue and a great relationship so I appreciate that.”

Stafford said his job as the starting quarterback was to help all players, including Simpson, prepare for the season.

“He’s a guy that asks questions,” Stafford said. “I’ve been trying to answer those as honestly and as thoroughly as I possibly can.

“He’s a smart kid. He’s got talent, obviously. He’s a high draft pick so happy to add good players to our team.”

It is too early to quantify what Simpson has brought to the team, McVay said. The offseason workout program is about “setting foundations” that will help once players are participating in full-speed settings during training camp.

Simpson is on track for a lot of reps when camp begins in late July at Loyola Marymount.

Last year, Stafford was sidelined all of training camp because of a back issue. But he returned before the opener and won his first MVP award.

So the Rams are expected to modify Stafford’s traditional training camp workload — and aim for similar results.

Offseason workouts are going well, Stafford said.

“Throwing it like I know how to throw it and for somebody my age,” he quipped. “I feel pretty good.”

Even with the extension, the Rams and Stafford will continue to talk contract on a year-to-year basis, a practice they have followed since 2024, when Stafford delayed his arrival to training camp because of an impasse.

“I can’t sit there and tell you what it’s going to look like 365 days from now,” he said. “But it’s just one of those deals where I’m doing the best I can to make sure that I can play as long as I can and make sure that my family and I are all on the same page before we embark on whatever season it may be.”

If this season plays out as expected, the Rams could give Stafford another weapon at the trade deadline.

Until then, they’ve guaranteed him plenty of cash.

And motivation.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford, the reigning NFL most valuable player, is now under contract with the Rams through the 2027 season.

Stafford signed a contract extension Thursday, the team announced. Terms of the deal were not released but it is a one-year extension worth $55 million, a person with knowledge of the situation said. The person requested anonymity because the contract has not been posted.

Stafford, 38, is scheduled to carry a salary-cap number of $48.3 million this season, according to Overthecap.com.

With Stafford, receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams and a defense featuring edge rusher Jared Verse and recently acquired All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie, the Rams are regarded as a favorite to play in Super Bowl LXI at SoFi Stadium.

Whether Stafford, a 17-year veteran, plays in 2027 remains to be seen.

Last month, the Rams selected former Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th pick in the draft. Fourth-year pro Stetson Bennett also is on the roster.

The Rams and Stafford had been working on the framework of an extension ever since Stafford announced during NFL Honors in February that he would return this season to play for a team that advanced to the NFC championship game before losing to the eventual Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.

The team and the quarterback have been conducting contract talks on a year-to-year basis since 2024, after Stafford delayed his arrival to training camp because of a contract impasse. Last year, Stafford and the team came to an agreement on March 1.

In 2025, Stafford passed for 46 touchdowns, with eight interceptions. He was voted All-Pro and won his first MVP award.

Stafford has been participating in voluntary offseason workouts. The team begins more comprehensive organized-team activities next week.

Training camp opens in July in preparation for the Sept. 10 season opener against the San Francisco 49ers in Melbourne, Australia.