What If Dan Orlovsky Is Right About Ty Simpson?

ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky says Ty Simpson is the best quarterback in the 2026 NFL Draft. To neutral observers, that comes off as questionable, given that Fernando Mendoza is a near lock to be the first overall pick in April. Critics have suggested it’s tied to the fact that Orlovsky and Simpson share representation.

A post that generated more than one million impressions tried to connect those dots on Monday: "Dan Orlovsky, CAA. Ty Simpson, CAA. Fernando Mendoza, Excel Sports Management."

Orlovsky addressed the accusation on the "Pat McAfee Show" on Tuesday.

"I see a lot of the things that get said. I don’t address them all. But the agents work for us, not the other way around," Orlovsky said. "They’re employed by us, respectfully. That’s how the business model works. CAA is a very big agency. They have a lot of people."

"I would just say I’m not nearly important enough to CAA financially for them to pay me to say something about a guy who might be the 20th pick in the draft," he added. "I don’t make enough money for them to pay me to say that. But people can think what they want. There is no motive behind this. There is no ulterior motive."

It also makes little sense for Orlovsky to favor players based on their ties to CAA. 

As he noted, agencies work for the talent, not the other way around. If Orlovsky and CAA parted ways, the agency would lose its percentage of his salary. Orlovsky wouldn't lose a dime. He'd simply sign with a different agency. There's an argument that UTA and WME are currently better options for sports media talent, anyway.

It’s also unlikely Orlovsky is coordinating his on-air opinions with his agent. Those relationships are generally centered on contract negotiations and career management, not editorial direction.

And it’s worth considering another possibility: Orlovsky might be right.

Fernando Mendoza is widely viewed as the top quarterback in the class. Still, the draft process is far less exact than it’s often presented. Evaluators miss all the time.

Few projected Patrick Mahomes to surpass Mitchell Trubisky in 2017. The same was true for Josh Allen relative to Baker Mayfield in 2018.

No one truly knows.

Having a differing opinion does not require a shared agency, especially in an environment where many analysts tend to align with the consensus to avoid scrutiny.

Of course, there are analysts who lean into contrarian takes for attention, like Chris Simms. However, that is not Orlovsky's reputation. 

And, the good news, we will know whether he is right in short order.