There were 257 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft and the most shocking one definitely came from the Los Angeles Rams, who decided to take Ty Simpson at 13th overall. The Rams already have the reigning NFL MVP on their roster in Matthew Stafford, but despite that fact, they decided to take the Alabama quarterback. 

Most NFL fans were stunned by the pick, but Ty Simpson and his family likely weren’t too shocked due to the contact they had with the team leading up to the draft. 

This was a pick that was months in the making, so let’s take a look at how it came together. 

Rams GM Les Snead meets with Simpson’s family just before the Rose Bowl

The first indication that the Rams were seriously interested in possibly taking Simpson came in late December when the Alabama Crimson Tide were out in Southern California getting ready for their Rose Bowl matchup against Indiana. During the week, Simpson’s family was doing some research on whether it would make more sense for Simpson to stay in college for one more year or to enter the NFL Draft. Due to the amount of NIL money that a quarterback can make, Simpson knew he could potentially make more money in college in 2026 UNLESS he was drafted in the first round, so his family wanted to get a feel on whether there was any chance he would be taken in the first round. 

According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Miami Hurricanes had a $6.5 million offer on the table for Simpson to play with them 2026, so at that point, if Simpson was going to declare for the draft, he needed to know he was going to be first round pick, otherwise, going to the NFL wouldn’t make much financial sense for him. 

The Simpsons became sold on Ty’s chances of being a first-round pick after talking to Les Snead. 

“So then they’re out there in L.A. for the Rose Bowl, the Rams actually have Ty Simpson’s parents over to the facility,” Pelissero explained. “They spend time with them. Mom is still on the fence, dad’s gathering all the information, and when they asked, ‘Why should Ty come out in this draft?’ And the answer, and I’m paraphrasing — I wasn’t in the room — from Les Snead was, essentially, ‘because I’m gonna take him with the No. 13 pick.’ Now, there’s nothing binding about a conversation or a text message or advice. But that’s how convicted Les Snead was about Ty Simpson being a franchise quarterback in the NFL.”

At that point, Ty clearly felt confident about his chances of being taken in the first round, because six days after the Rose Bowl, he declared for the NFL Draft. 

Simpson’s secret meeting with Sean McVay

When it comes to the NFL Draft, the Rams are one of the most secretive teams in the NFL. Head coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead DON’T attend the combine (They haven’t been to Indianapolis for the event since 2020). One other unique thing about the Rams is that they don’t do top-30 visits. When a team has a prospect in for a visit, they have to report it to the NFL and that information eventually becomes public, but if you don’t invite anyone in for a visit, then there’s nothing to report. 

Although the Rams don’t invite players to their facility, they do travel to visit with players they’re interested in. The difference between that and a top-30 visit is that it doesn’t have to be reported to the NFL, so the team can keep it a secret. At some point during the draft process, that’s what happened with McVay and Simpson. 

During an interview Monday on ESPN Radio’s “Amber & Ian,” Simpson revealed how the “secret” meeting went down. 

“We tried to keep this under wraps as long as we could,” Simpson said. “It was something to where I knew they were interested, but they wanted to make it private and didn’t want people to know that they were interested. So, I had some secret meetings with Coach McVay, and I was trying to be on script and do what everybody told me and not to tell anybody.”

Simpson was so good at keeping the secret that he didn’t even leak out AFTER being drafted. During a press conference following the first round, Simpson was asked if he had met with anyone in the Rams organization over the past few months and he definitely didn’t mention talking to McVay. 

“I met with some scouts in Alabama and that was really it,” Simpson said Thursday. “They talked to my agent but that was really wasn’t much.”

Despite the Rams’ interest, Simpson still wasn’t 100% sure that they would end up taking him, but he did think he was going to go in the first round. 

“It was something to where I knew that they were interested, I just didn’t know when,” Simpson said during his radio interview. “I had a lot of confidence in myself and that’s what I decided to come out. If it wasn’t them, I felt like it was going to be somebody else.”

Although McVay and Simpson only had one meeting before the draft, that one meeting lasted for several “hours.” 

“We met at the facility and it was something to where we just talked for hours and hours and it was just football, it was just straight football,” Simpson said. “It was like a kid in a candy store. Me and him are sitting there, and we’re just going back and forth. You can tell the obsession he has for the game and you can tell the love he has for quarterback play.”

The meeting with McVay makes all the sense in the world. If the Rams were truly thinking about drafting a quarterback at 13th overall, there’s no way they’d make that move without letting McVay meet him face to face, which is why the Rams coach ended up meeting with the Alabama QB. 

“Being with him and then getting to know him and then just seeing a little bit of how I would get coached if I was fortunate enough to go there was something that I couldn’t have asked for a better situation,” Simpson said. 

After the meeting, the Rams were very adamant that to Simpson that McVay’s visit needed to stay a secret. 

“I was told to not say anything, because they didn’t want anybody to know,” Simpson said. “We had one meeting and we kept it private.”

The Rams also met with Indiana cornerback D’Angelo Ponds in April and he ended up sharing that information with the world just before the draft. 

The Rams probably didn’t ask Ponds to keep the meeting a secret, so this isn’t a big deal. However, with Simpson, it was a big deal. If Simpson had shared that he met with the Rams just days before the draft, that could have flipped things upside down. Any team that was in need of a QB going into the draft might have become even more interested in getting Simpson knowing that one of the NFL’s smartest offensive minds (McVay) was after him. 

Rams actually wanted to trade out of 13th overall

Although the Rams wanted Simpson, it appears that they would have preferred to take him at a later point in the first round. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Rams wanted to trade back, but they didn’t receive a single phone call while they were on the clock, so they were forced to take Simpson at 13th overall. 

“The Rams were going to try to trade back, that was the plan, hopefully move back to, say, Detroit at 17, get some extra picks and take Ty Simpson there,” Schefter said on his podcast. “When their turn on the clock came, they didn’t get any calls. They had no offers.”

This is an interesting tidbit, because it tells you that the Rams definitely liked Simpson, but they felt that taking him at 13th overall might be a slight reach. 

When the pick was announced on draft night, it left everyone stunned. Forty-niners general manager John Lynch had a smirk on his face when he was asked about the Rams’ shocking pick. 

As for the Rams, maybe McVay was frustrated that they weren’t able to trade back, but whatever the reason, he definitely seemed to be in a crabby mood during a combined press conference with Snead following the first round. 

The Rams coach later admitted that if he came off grumpy, it was because he didn’t want to send the wrong message to Stafford. If McVay had been happy and celebratory during the press conference, that might have left a bad taste in Stafford’s mouth. 

“I would have been stoic by nature anyway, just based on the respect for Matthew,” McVay told ESPN. “It’s a unique situation, You get a chance to be able to take a player that you like at a really important position, but you don’t want it to be minimized or misunderstood in terms of what this means in terms of our investment and our commitment to Matthew for as long as he wants to continue to play. And so you’re kind of teetering that line, and clearly, I came off a little grumpier than normal.”

At multiple points over the weekend, McVay made it clear that Stafford will be the starting QB in Los Angeles for as long as he wants to play. Of course, the fact that McVay is already worried about hurting Stafford’s feelings means the head coach is going to have a fine line to walk over the next few years. 

Going into the weekend, Simpson hadn’t yet heard from Stafford, but he did get a welcoming message from the reigning MVP’s wife, Kelly. 

“I have not [heard from Matthew],” Simpson said. “Kelly [Stafford] has actually texted me on Instagram and welcomed me. She told me to hit her up with my family if we never need anything, but I can’t wait to talk to Matthew. I’m super ecstatic because I just want to pick his brain about everything and soak up all that knowledge.”

This Rams’ decision to draft Simpson is going to be one of the most hotly debated picks over the next few months and into the future, but it doesn’t seem like there was much debate in the Rams’ front office. They wanted their guy and they got him. 

Dmitry Bivol could be presented with the opportunity to become a two-time undisputed champion, but only if he wins his next outing against Michael Eifert.

The pair will collide at the UMMC Arena, Russia, on May 30, with Bivol returning from back surgery to make a mandatory defence of his unified crown.

He previously held all four major light-heavyweight titles following his last fight, a majority decision victory over Artur Beterbiev in February 2025.

Shortly after exacting his revenge over Beterbiev, however, Bivol opted to vacate his WBC world title rather than face mandatory challenger David Benavidez, who was then swiftly elevated from ‘interim’ to full champion. In his first defence, he scored a seventh-round stoppage victory over Anthony Yarde in November.

Now, the 29-year-old is bidding to become a three-division world champion against Gilberto Ramirez, who he will face for the WBO and WBA cruiserweight titles this Saturday.

Regardless of the result, though, Benavidez has expressed an interest in moving back down to 175lbs in pursuit of an undisputed clash with Bivol.

Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn, has now revealed to Fight Hub TV that talks are already underway for his fighter to face ‘The Mexican Monster’.

“[Benavidez] can come back to light-heavyweight. I think he likes the Bivol fight – that’s a fight we’re discussing with [boxing manager] Luis DeCubas.”

Benavidez has repeatedly claimed that he once hurt the Russian unified champion in sparring, back when he was just 22 years old and campaigning at super-middleweight. Theirs could therefore develop into a compelling rivalry as Bivol aims to return to elite-level competition after taking care of business against Eifert.

A venue that was a staple on the PGA Tour for a decade has since seen a decade pass since it last hosted a tournament on the circuit. That drought will come to an end this week, however, as the PGA Tour makes its return to the Blue Monster at Trump National Doral for the 2026 Cadillac Championship.

A new signature event on the PGA Tour schedule, the Cadillac Championship will see most — not all — of the best players on the PGA Tour tee it up on the par 72 that stretches to nearly a whopping 7,800 yards. Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Ludvig Åberg and Matt Fitzpatrick are among the notables not in the field as they keep one eye on next week’s signature event, the Truist Championship at Quail Hollow, and the other on the PGA Championship at Aronimink in two weeks’ time.

In their place, world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler returns to competition following his playoff loss to Fitzpatrick at the most recent signature event, the RBC Heritage. A runner-up finisher in his two most recent starts, Scheffler is starting to find his groove at an eerily similar time that he did in 2025 when he won in his final start before the PGA Championship (which he also won).

Scheffler could continue a run of champions at Doral that were (or ultimately became) champions at another golf course: Augusta National. Adam Scott, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed and Tiger Woods were the last four winners of the WGC-Cadillac Championship.

Alex Fitzpatrick makes his debut as a member of the PGA Tour following his win with Matt at the Zurich Classic with fellow Europeans Tommy Fleetwood, Rose, Viktor Hovland, Shane Lowry, Sepp Straka and Alex Noren all teeing it up.

Collin Morikawa took a week off after two strong starts in spite of a not so strong back and rounds out a field that includes Russell Henley, Hideki Matsuyama, Sam Burns and Chris Gotterup.

2026 Cadillac Championship schedule

Dates: April 30 – May 3
Location: Trump National Doral (Blue Monster) — Miami
Par: 72 | Yardage: 7,739 | Architect: Dick Wilson & Robert von Hagge
Purse: $20 million

2026 Cadillac Championship odds

Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook

• Scottie Scheffler (+310): Despite some wanting more out of Scheffler, the world No. 1 is ahead of schedule compared to last season with a win already under his belt. In this field, he ranks No. 1 in total strokes gained, strokes gained tee to green and strokes gained around the green as his ball striking continues to trend in the right direction. On a golf course that will require execution and patience, Scheffler has both in spades. The driver has settled into a very comfortable spot the last two tournaments and will bleed into his iron play soon enough setting up a performance that will remind the world he is by far the best. That could very well come this week.
• Cameron Young (13-1)
• Collin Morikawa (22-1): The two-time major champion showed some chops the last couple of weeks as he battled to top 10 finishes at the Masters and RBC Heritage without a clean bill of health. If the week off brings certainty in his back and in his health, Morikawa will relish in the return to Doral given his proficiency with his long irons. He ranks No. 1 in this field in strokes gained approach in 2026.
• Tommy Fleetwood (25-1)
• Russell Henley (25-1)
• Sam Burns (27-1)
• Chris Gotterup (30-1): It is not like he has fallen off that much since his two wins early in the season. Gotterup nabbed a top 10 at the big ballpark that is Memorial Park before a top-25 finish in his Masters debut. He continued to flash brilliance at Harbour Town only to be undone by his short game. Everything is there for him to pick up win No. 3 this week, it will just be a matter of stringing four rounds together.
• Patrick Cantlay (30-1)
• Adam Scott (33-1): The last winner on the PGA Tour at Doral was … Bueller? Bueller? Ding, ding, ding. Mr. Scott. The Australian was 10 years younger when he conquered the Blue Monster, but his game continues to look more and more of that of a young man. Sufficiently long off the tee with continued speed gains with the driver, Scott has seen his iron play take the next step in 2026. He is top 10 in driving distance, strokes gained tee to green and strokes gained approach — that will play at this golf course.
• Justin Rose (33-1): It is not the first time Rose has made a head-scratching equipment move, but it is the first time he has done so in his mid 40s. The Englishman is now a member of the McLaren golf (?) team (not F1, although that would be a sight) and he will debut his new set of irons this week in Miami. We’ll see what that brings as he is currently enjoying the second-best approach season of his career behind just 2013 when he won the U.S. Open.
• Maverick McNealy (33-1)
• Hideki Matsuyama (33-1)

2026 Cadillac Championship picks

Who will win the 2026 Cadillac Championship, and which longshots will stun the golfing world? Visit SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard, all from the model that’s nailed 17 golf majors heading into the weekend, including the past five Masters, and find out. 

Teddy Atlas has assessed Junto Nakatani’s chances as he attempts to dethrone undisputed super-bantamweight king Naoya Inoue this Saturday.

The pair will square off at the Tokyo Dome, Japan, where Inoue overcame a shock knockdown to successfully defend his four world titles against Luis Nery in 2024.

Since then, ‘The Monster’ has made five consecutive defences of his undisputed crown at 122lbs, including an eighth-round finish over Ramon Cardenas last year.

Again, Inoue was compelled to climb off the canvas and cement his stoppage victory, but did so with tremendous composure and intelligence.

The 33-year-old then experienced far less resistance in his last outing against David Picasso, comfortably outpointing the previously unbeaten Mexican in December.

Nakatani, on the other hand, was introduced to a hard-fought encounter on the same card, resulting in a debatable unanimous decision victory over Sebastian Hernandez.

Prior to that, ‘Big Bang’ had become a three-division world champion while never really needing to display such resolve.

It could, therefore, either work to his advantage or detriment that the 28-year-old came through a torrid battle with Hernandez just over five months before facing Inoue.

Assessing the situation on his YouTube channel, Atlas gives the challenger a genuine chance but questions whether even the best version of Nakatani can defeat Inoue, a consensus top two pound-for-pound star.

“Listen, Inoue’s a big [betting] favourite … I think Nakatani’s a live dog. You have to like Inoue, it’s hard to go against him.

“This fight will come down to geography. Who fights at the range, the distance, the location that better-suits them for their talent?

“Inoue wants to be close; Nakatani wants to be [fighting] at a distance. And he’s a southpaw. He wants to make it hard for Inoue to make ground.

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“Nakatani took a lot of punishment [against Hernandez]. Has he had enough time to recover? He went in that ring and came out of it with probably a little less of himself.

“At 28, he’s young enough to handle that – youth can do amazing things. I give Nakatani a shot.”

From a psychological perspective, Atlas believes that Nakatani has only benefited from his fight with Hernandez.

Whether his body has been given sufficient time to recover, though, is another matter entirely.

England defender John Stones has said he has achieved all his dreams at Manchester City after confirming he will leave the club at the end of the season.

The 31-year-old, whose contract expires this summer, has played 293 matches since joining from Everton in 2016 for £47.5 million.

During his time at City, Stones won six Premier League titles, the UEFA Champions League, two FA Cups, five League Cups, three Community Shields, the FIFA Club World Cup and the UEFA Super Cup.

In an emotional message on social media, Stones said Manchester City has been his home for the past 10 years and will always remain special to him. He explained that he arrived as a young player and is now leaving as a more mature man, having built a family and enjoyed a successful career on the pitch.

He added that he achieved everything he hoped for at the club and never imagined he would reach such a level of success or build such strong relationships with teammates and fans.

Stones also praised manager Pep Guardiola, saying he is grateful for the opportunity to work with him and believes his success would not have been possible without the Spaniard.

The defender was Guardiola’s second signing at the club and was, at the time, one of the most expensive defenders in the world.

He is one of several long-serving players to leave the Etihad, following the departures of Kevin De Bruyne, Kyle Walker and Ederson last summer. Club captain Bernardo Silva is also expected to leave soon.

Despite struggling with injuries in recent seasons, Stones remains a fan favourite. He scored 19 goals for the club, including an important equaliser against Arsenal in 2024, and produced a famous goal-line clearance against Liverpool during the 2018–19 title race.

One of his standout moments came in 2023 when he played in midfield as City defeated Inter Milan to win the Champions League and complete a historic treble.

However, injuries have affected his consistency. He has made only 16 appearances this season and has missed many matches over the years due to fitness problems.

Manager Guardiola recently said Stones remains a top defender when fully fit but admitted injuries have limited his impact.

As he prepares to leave, Stones could soon decide his next move, with reports linking him to Barcelona, while Everton and Coventry City are also said to be interested.

File photo of Smriti Mandhana© PTI

Punjab Kings’ Lockie Ferguson during a warm-up session (ANI Photo)

NEW DELHI: League leaders Punjab Kings handed a major boost to their bowling attack with the inclusion of Lockie Ferguson as they took on Rajasthan Royals in a crucial Indian Premier League 2026 clash on Tuesday.Rajasthan skipper Riyan Parag won the toss and opted to bowl first at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, citing early moisture due to recent rain and cloud cover.

Ferguson boost for unbeaten Punjab

All eyes were on Punjab’s team sheet as the hosts brought in express pacer Ferguson in place of Xavier Bartlett, signalling a clear intent to sharpen their pace attack. The New Zealand quick’s raw speed is expected to play a key role, especially under conditions that could assist seamers early on.Punjab also made a forced change, with Suryansh Shedge replacing Shashank Singh in the XI.Captain Shreyas Iyer admitted he would have preferred to bowl first but remained confident in his side’s adaptability. “Any time you bat or bowl, it’s a great challenge. All of us are proactive irrespective of the toss,” he said.Speaking about consistency, Iyer added, “We have a certain goal to achieve and we know the eventual goal. Our mindset is about maintaining standards and values. It’s been brilliant so far, and we need to keep the momentum going.”Punjab head into the contest as the only unbeaten side this season and will be keen to consolidate their position at the top of the table.

Royals look to exploit early conditions

For Rajasthan, Parag emphasised the importance of making early inroads. “There’s a little moisture at the start, so we’re trying to extract that and get a few early wickets,” he said.The Royals made two changes of their own, bringing in Dasun Shanaka for Shimron Hetmyer and Yash Punja in place of Ravi Bishnoi.Currently placed fourth, Rajasthan have a chance to climb higher with a win, but they face a confident Punjab unit riding a wave of momentum.With Ferguson’s pace added to an already potent attack featuring Arshdeep Singh and Marco Jansen, Punjab will look to make early breakthroughs and extend their dominant run in IPL 2026.

PBKS vs RR Playing XIs

Punjab Kings XI: Prabhsimran Singh(w), Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer(c), Cooper Connolly, Suryansh Shedge, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Lockie Ferguson, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra ChahalRajasthan Royals XI: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel(w), Riyan Parag(c), Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Dasun Shanaka, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, Yash Raj Punja