NFL coordinator offers strong advice to teams that may draft Ty Simpson

The only thing that's certain about the short-term future of Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Ty Simpson is that a team will eventually select him during the 2026 NFL Draft. The player-selection process gets underway on Thursday night. 

As ESPN's Dan Graziano noted on Wednesday, "many wonder if Simpson could tumble out of the first round entirely." According to one unnamed AFC coordinator who recently spoke with NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, such a scenario playing out may not be the worst thing for Simpson's long-term development. 

Where Ty Simpson should hope to land during the NFL Draft 

"He’s not a guy ideally that you’d hand the keys to right away," the coordinator said about Simpson. "I’d hope he goes to a good team with an aging quarterback where he’s a system fit, where he can be a backup early, grow, and then is ready when he gets a chance, and you see what happens. He’s got a chance to be a really good processor and distributor — he can handle a lot of pre- and postsnap, he sees it, and in a way that translates to NFL quarterbacking. He’s good enough where the good moments look good. He’s got good twitch and play speed."

Recent whispers have linked Simpson with the Los Angeles Rams, New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals. Matthew Stafford is set to serve as the Rams starter this September, and he could soon sign a contract extension. The Jets have Geno Smith atop their depth chart this spring, but he could be benched if he loses more than he wins through the end of October. Arizona could start either Jacoby Brissett or Gardner Minshew for at least a portion of Simpson's rookie season. 

For a mock draft updated on Wednesday, ESPN's Peter Schrager predicted that the Cardinals will make a trade to grab Simpson with the final selection of the first round (No. 32). 

Quarterbacks coach shares worrisome take about Ty Simpson

Meanwhile, one unnamed NFC quarterbacks coach who spoke with Breer detailed why Simpson may slide down the draft order on Thursday night. 

"I think he’s a backup that in any other draft would be picked as a backup and only to be a backup," the coach said about Simpson. "He’s inexperienced (15 college starts), I think he’s an average athlete with that same type of arm strength, and he plays small. But he’s the second-best quarterback in the draft, so he’ll go earlier than he should."

Some think the Rams could move down from the draft's 13th overall pick so they could take Simpson and then let him learn as Stafford's primary backup for at least one season. Such a situation could result in Rams head coach Sean McVay finding his next long-term QB1.