Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson’s draft stock is reportedly climbing through five games of his first season starting for the Crimson Tide.
One AFC area scout recently told ESPN’s Jordan Reid that Simpson “has a chance” to become a first-round selection in the 2026 NFL draft.
“He’s grown on me a lot over these past few weeks. I think he has a chance to get into the Round 1 discussion if he stays on this current trajectory,” the scout told Reid.
Simpson heads into the weekend leading the SEC with both 1,478 passing yards and a 174.7 passer rating while throwing 13 touchdowns and one interception through Alabama’s 4-1 start to the season.
After spending the 2023 and 2024 seasons serving as Alabama’s backup, Simpson won the starting job over redshirt sophomore Austin Mack and freshman Keelon Russell this summer.
He got off to a rough start in his debut campaign as QB1 with a 31-17 season-opening loss to Florida State back on Aug. 30.
But Simpson and the Crimson Tide have since bounced back with four straight wins, most recently taking down No. 5 Georgia and No. 16 Vanderbilt in a pair of back-to-back wins against ranked SEC opponents.
Next up is a Saturday road matchup with No. 14 Missouri, a program that has already expressed some concern about the difficulty of matching up with Simpson.
“The quarterback makes very good decisions. Not easily deceived with disguise, unaffected by pressure, ability to escape,” Mizzou head coach Eli Drinkwitz told reporters Tuesday. “I think those three things make it really difficult to try to game-plan a quarterback on third down.
“You kind of have to pick your poison. If we play zone, he’s going to pick us apart. If we blitz, he’s going to stand in there, and identify the one-on-one matchup, and take it.”
Simpson could continue to improve both his draft reputation and Alabama’s playoff chances as the Crimson Tide’s slate of ranked opponents continues this weekend against Missouri and the following Saturday against No. 12 Tennessee.
Because of his redshirt junior status, however, Simpson could still decide to return for another college season and wait until 2027 to enter the NFL draft. His decision could hinge at least in part on how the Crimson Tide perform down the stretch, starting with Saturday’s noon kickoff at Mizzou.
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