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Is Ty Simpson the NFL draft's hidden gem, or is Fernando Mendoza the undisputed QB1? Dive into a passionate debate that challenges conventional draft wisdom and re-evaluates what truly makes an elite quarterback.

This discussion unpacks the contrasting film analysis of Ty Simpson and Fernando Mendoza, questioning who truly carried their team and demonstrated more NFL-ready throws. We explore critical moments of panic, downfield accuracy, and the unique importance of back-shoulder throws that could define a quarterback's success.

Prepare for a fresh perspective that might just make you reconsider your top QB prospect. The NFL draft is full of surprises, and this conversation aims to uncover one of its most compelling storylines.

#NFLDraft #Quarterback #TySimpson #FernandoMendoza
Transcript
00:01So, I'm going to open up my doors to perception here, even though I don't want to, even though
00:08I'm kind of playing for 2027, because I don't trust anybody working on 2026.
00:16Maybe it's because I just want to keep an open mind with less than a month until the
00:22draft.
00:22Maybe it's because we have Kalen DeBoer coming on the show tomorrow.
00:25I don't know.
00:27But maybe I need to open up my doors to perception on Ty Simpson just a little bit, just a
00:33smidge.
00:34Just say we have Kalen DeBoer coming on the show tomorrow.
00:39Glad you brought that up.
00:40Hell yeah.
00:41Head coach of Alabama joins us tomorrow morning on the show.
00:45And the first question I'm going to ask him is, how can I trust your quarterback, former
00:51quarterback, to finally stop the bleeding that's been going on since 1999 with the Cleveland
00:59Browns for 26 seasons?
01:01First question I've got to ask him right out of the box.
01:03Kalen DeBoer tomorrow morning.
01:06Because I think we might have jumped the shark yesterday.
01:08Here's Dan Orlovsky, former NFL quarterback, guy who breaks down a lot of film.
01:15ESPN's get up on Ty Simpson maybe being the best QB in this draft.
01:20I think Ty Simpson is QB1.
01:22I think Ty Simpson is the best quarterback in this class.
01:25I think when you look at the body of work and what was asked of these two quarterbacks,
01:30you have to start with the question, who needed to do more to carry their football team to play
01:35well?
01:35Ty Simpson.
01:36And it's not close between those two quarterbacks.
01:39Who took more games over throughout the course of the season?
01:42Ty Simpson.
01:43It's not even close.
01:44And if we're asking like, okay, we're trying to see what you are as a player in college
01:49and what you're going to be asked to do in the NFL and what translates.
01:52I start with, what do you do in moments of panic with the football?
01:55Because that's really what separates good to great.
01:58I would tell you that Ty Simpson is more consistent in that regard.
02:01There's not a ton of moments of panic out of Fernando Mendoza.
02:04And then there's moments when he immediately drops his eyes and becomes a runner.
02:08Ty Simpson, more consistent in that.
02:09What guy was asked to do more NFL throws?
02:11When I say NFL throws, I'm talking 15, 20, 25-yard in routes, crossing routes, deep corner
02:17or sail routes.
02:18Ty Simpson, and it's not even close in that regard.
02:22Downfield throws, the posts and the goes, I think they're close.
02:26Mendoza throws a lot of go routes, and he's good at it.
02:28But I think they're close.
02:29RPO, get it out.
02:30That's probably what Mendoza's offense was.
02:33And then I think throwing on the move, they're both equal.
02:36So when it comes to moments of panic and big throws, real NFL throws, I think it's clearly
02:41Ty Simpson.
02:41I would rather have Ty Simpson at the 15 to 20 range than Fernando Mendoza at one.
02:48I agree with almost everything except the end part of what he says about the big throws
02:56and things like that.
02:57I think Fernando Mendoza made some real big throws last year for Indiana.
03:01I think he was forced to make some big throws for California as well.
03:04I gotta tell you, I'm a little confused here.
03:07And I know people are going right to the, who represents Dan Orlovsky, who represents, you
03:12know, they're going to the agencies.
03:15Well, because immediately we try to draw that conclusion.
03:17Yeah, I'm not doing that.
03:18Like, Orlovsky's more than entitled to, I'm glad, honestly, I'm glad we have a difference
03:22of opinion because it gets boring if everybody just says, yeah, Mendoza number one, even though
03:25we know Mendoza's going number one overall and just had this amazing year.
03:29Mendoza, he's right about a lot of things, had less than he had to do because they stuck
03:34with the run there and Mendoza's stats are honestly kind of average.
03:40If you look at all the elite quarterbacks that have come out of the number one overall
03:43picks or whatever, his stats are way below everybody else's.
03:46Why?
03:46I mean, they had 30 point leads in the third quarter and they ran the ball.
03:50They weren't trying to get him a Heisman and he still won the Heisman because of how great
03:53it was and, you know, the rest of the field was kind of down.
03:56With all that said, Mendoza, I saw the numbers floated yesterday.
04:00He led college football for a guy that didn't throw that much compared to everybody else.
04:04Mendoza led college football with what they call opposite hash sideline throws.
04:10Like, those are NFL throws.
04:11Those back shoulder throws that I, that's what's got me thinking he's easily going to translate
04:17to the NFL.
04:17Mendoza or Simpson?
04:18Because of those back shoulder throws that I, I have never, I've never seen a college
04:24quarterback be so good at those.
04:27And that is such an NFL throw.
04:29That's every third down.
04:30Like that's Aaron Rodgers.
04:31That's all he's got left are the back shoulder throws.
04:34And Mendoza could do that like falling out of bed.
04:37So, so I, I, to me, I think it's kind of silly to act like Simpson is right there or
04:43his
04:43tape is so much better.
04:44See, I agree.
04:45Mendoza.
04:45I agree with you.
04:46Um, and I think that Mendoza, because of his body size, because of the experience, I think
04:51that he's going to be more, uh, easily available.
04:54I, I mean, I don't know what necessarily what the Raiders plans are.
04:57You know, if I, if you're Tom Brady, who definitely is spearheaded a lot of things when
05:02it comes to that football team, I don't know if I would just, because he's the number one
05:05picked, I mean, I'd start in week one.
05:06Uh, but if you were looking at for a guy who had to start as early as possible, I think
05:11Fernando Mendoza makes a lot of sense experience, body size, uh, the leadership that
05:15he's shown in two different places.
05:17That's all there for Ty Simpson.
05:18I do think he's shown good leadership with Alabama.
05:21I don't think that he's secretly a Bo Callahan type of person.
05:24I think far from it.
05:25I just look at the experience, the things he's had to do.
05:28And I'm thinking, is he, I think fit has to matter here.
05:31Is he a fit with this football team where you were to say you were to break the draft and
05:37you took him at number six, or you moved up to number 12, or maybe you moved back to
05:4112 and he's there and you guys start talking.
05:44And I, this is a scary scenario because you want to make that decision with conviction for
05:50that quarterback.
05:51You don't want to sit there and hem and haw and then he falls to you at six and you
05:54take
05:55him at six in a perfect world.
05:56You're laughing because you get all these other things, but regardless, if you got him, do
06:01we have what it takes to support him to not have to put him in too soon?
06:05Because the lack of experience scares me.
06:07There's some throws there that some of the anticipatory throws that are going to be brought
06:10up here during this last month.
06:11They're really, really good.
06:13And so I find myself here finding there.
06:15I have said a lot of times, 2027, that's where I'm looking at.
06:19If Shador Sanders can't hack it this year, then I think I'm looking at 2027.
06:24Ty Simpson becomes the last gasp tone.
06:27You know, I mean, we've had conversations about all these other QBs.
06:30We've had knockdown drag outs over all the free agents, the possible trades, anything
06:36that seems even somewhat realistic and all the things that don't seem realistic.
06:40We've had those discussions.
06:42Ty Simpson's that last gasp.
06:44Anybody after him, like, yeah, if they took Drew Aller, who's a local guy, I, I wouldn't
06:50like it because I don't think that going from one fishbowl to this fishbowl is good
06:54for him or good for his, good for his maturation process as a quarterback.
06:58But I think a lot of people would probably be excited about that.
07:01I wouldn't be for the reasons I just said, but I don't think that there's a real hope
07:05with any of the other QBs.
07:07You took Ty Simpson in the first round.
07:09You know, that changes a lot of people's perception of what this team could be, will
07:12be.
07:13It just doesn't make sense.
07:14How much they trust him.
07:14I don't think it makes sense either, but it doesn't make sense for me at all at this
07:17point.
07:18Not, not to say that he doesn't like, we were talking about guys and how they project yesterday
07:23when it came to Freeling.
07:26At quarterback, it's a different, it's a whole different ball game that you can, people would
07:30say, well, you're being hypocritical.
07:31You would say that the offensive lineman doesn't have to play day one on this team, but the quarterback,
07:35but you wouldn't take Simpson, even though I think there's so much more in terms of an
07:39investment and a consideration for Simpson, especially because you'd be taking them in the first
07:43round.
07:44Like, it's not like when you took Gabriel and, and which is still what top 100 pick or
07:50when you took Sanders in the fifth round, totally different ball game.
07:53When we're talking about a quarterback in the first round, because you're tethered to
07:56them in a way that you wouldn't be for other, other quarterback situations.
08:01I also don't think it makes sense because when you've started 15 games and you're still young.
08:07Now I brought up body size before, you know, six, one or six, one and a half, whatever
08:11it is, slight, he had three, he had three injuries this last year.
08:16I wonder if you're going to be able to take the punishment of the NFL.
08:19You know, I know Tony Eason was taller, but that's kind of how I see it.
08:22I'll have to ask that question to Kayla Naboor coming up tomorrow morning.
08:25Right.
08:26But there's also the fit of how is he going to be able to show what he can in this
08:31year
08:31when you may have a whole nother year of a great draft class.
08:36You might, I know we've been talking about the last couple of draft class.
08:39Well, this quarterback draft class is going to be better.
08:40This quarterback draft class is going to be better.
08:42All right.
08:43Well, if it's, if it stays that way with 2027, then you're going to have more options.
08:47I don't know what they're going to do with Andrew Barry after this year.
08:49If you don't go to where you need to go and get nine wins, maybe he's gone.
08:53If there's a new philosophy in there, did I just throw away a first round pick?
08:57Because how much is he going to be able to show me?
09:00And if we're bad enough this year, could the next quarterback for the Browns be undeniable?
09:05So now I wonder, is it ever a fit for the now and for the future?
09:09Or are we just wasting a pick and trying to take a flyer in the first round on a quarterback?
09:15I can understand fifth round.
09:17I can understand day three.
09:20When we're talking flyers on in first round, I mean, that's the way it would feel.
09:24Cause I don't think I would condone starting him week one.
09:28And then the conversation, you know, the conversation would be with some people.
09:31He can't even beat out the fifth round guy.
09:32He can't even beat out a guy they don't want to play.
09:34And I don't think that'd be fair to Ty Simpson.
09:36I don't think it'd be fair to anybody else in the quarterback room, but we know how narratives
09:39get formed.
09:40And so if you have a guy who starts out the season, say you do start the season out with
09:44your door.
09:45How soon does Ty Simpson have to come in where the season gets off the rails?
09:49And then you put him in and then he's got to deal with everything else.
09:52Oh, and you got another draft class coming up where we don't know the general manager's
09:56future and we don't know their future either.
09:58Like the more I say it, the more I'm just like, man, you got to really love Ty Simpson
10:04to even consider the conversation.
10:07And I just don't, it's, it's tough also.
10:11And maybe I'm oversimplifying and maybe the legal evolve again, but especially when I hear
10:16Todd Munkin talk about dual threat quarterbacks and how that is so much more of a cheat code
10:23in today's game.
10:24The way the defenses are structured when I, when, when you try to sell me on Ty Simpson,
10:29and by the way, I'll be saying the exact same thing about Julian saying a year from
10:32now, mark my words, it doesn't matter that he's a Buckeye and maybe he'll have won a national
10:36championship at that point with Ohio state looking at guys that are six, one, six, two,
10:43and don't run in today's NFL.
10:46It's hard for me, the way the sport has moved to process that is a first round pick.
10:52It really is.
10:54Well, I agree.
10:54Cause you got to get out of harm's way.
10:55You have to be all timer in accuracy and in the pocket for me to even consider that.
11:02And they keep saying like, well, Mendoza's a got the golf comparison.
11:06Mendoza can still take off and run.
11:08He still showed that ability.
11:09He did that national championship game with some big runs when things weren't really working.
11:14And I've seen that throughout Ty Simpson.
11:17I am not seeing that at all.
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