Pockets of football fans and at least one unnamed general manager have suggested that analyst Dan Orlovsky has said throughout the offseason that Alabama Crimson Tide star Ty Simpson and not Fernando Mendoza of the Indiana Hoosiers “is the best quarterback” in this year’s draft class because Orlovsky and Simpson are both represented by Creative Artists Agency.
Orlovsky previously insisted that he had “no ulterior motive” for his take regarding Simpson and Mendoza. During a recent appearance on “The Ross Tucker Football Podcast,” Orlovsky revealed that he received similar criticism last NFL season while breaking down the 2025 Most Valuable Player Award competition involving Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford and Drake Maye of the New England Patriots.
Dan Orlovsky: Theories about Fernando Mendoza, Ty Simpson draft takes are “a bunch of nonsense”
“It all started last year with the MVP race, and everyone was like, ‘Oh, Matthew Stafford’s represented by CAA, so Dan—’ So was Drake Maye,” Orlovsky said, per Brendon Kleen of Awful Announcing. “Had no clue until people were pointing out to me that Drake Maye was also represented by CAA. It’s a bunch of nonsense. I’ve said this, CAA … you don’t work for them, they work for you. That’s not meant to be in a disparaging way. The agent works for the talent. They are an employee of yours. CAA’s never asked me to say anything, so I don’t get it, but people make up narratives.”
At this point, it may be just about impossible to find a legitimate mock draft predicting anything other than the Las Vegas Raiders making Mendoza the draft’s first pick. For a piece published over the weekend, Aaron Schatz of ESPN wrote that “Mendoza is a worthy top pick, and none of this year’s other quarterbacks come close to his projection.” As for Simpson, it now appears that he could slide all the way to the second round of the player-selection process.
CAA doesn’t care what Dan Orlovsky has to say about clients?
“I don’t make enough money for me to matter to CAA in that regard,” Orlovsky added about whether he would be asked to give preferential treatment to fellow agency clients during on-air segments. “If I wasn’t a CAA client, they’re still going to be a good business.”
Some team will take a flier on Simpson during the draft and hope that Orlovsky is proven right. If such a scenario plays out, Orlovsky may be able to take victory laps during television and podcast segments for years to come.