How Carson Beck may be impacting Jets' Ty Simpson decision

The New York Jets are among a handful of teams that have been linked with Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Ty Simpson from this past winter through the days leading up to the start of the 2026 NFL Draft on Thursday night. 

However, ESPN's Matt Miller and Jeremy Fowler are among media members who think the Arizona Cardinals will eventually make a move to land Simpson. On Wednesday, Fowler revealed that the Jets may be just fine with Simpson heading to Arizona this spring. 

Would the Jets pass on Ty Simpson in the draft's second round? 

"The Cardinals are considered the most natural suitor for Simpson in league circles," Fowler wrote. "The Jets are a threat with the first pick of Day 2, but a few teams I've spoken to believe New York is looking toward 2027 to spend an early pick on a quarterback and could try to leverage the 33rd pick (this year) as Simpson trade bait if he's there. Arizona seems to be gauging whether it needs to move up to get Simpson or whether he'll be available with its second-round pick (No. 34)."

Whether or not Simpson will fall to the draft's second round could become the most-discussed topic of Thursday night's draft coverage. While the Jets could take a flier on Simpson at some point and sit him behind journeyman Geno Smith for at least a portion of the 2026 season, it sounds like Gang Green will target a different quarterback on Friday or Saturday. 

Are the Jets among the teams waiting for Carson Beck?

The 2027 draft is expected to be "loaded" with top-tier quarterback prospects. That said, Fowler also shared on Wednesday that his "potential sleeper" quarterback for the Jets in the middle rounds of this year's player-selection process is Miami's Carson Beck.

Recent whispers have suggested that Beck "really helped himself through the pre-draft process," to the point that a team could even consider trading back into the first round to grab him. For their final mock drafts, analysts such as The Athletic's Dane Brugler and NFL Media's Daniel Jeremiah predicted that the Jets or a different team would be able to get Beck outside of the first round.