The 2026 NFL Draft is rapidly approaching, and we’re beginning to learn more about the prospects that will be available. This isn’t considered to be a strong quarterback class, but there are at least a couple of intriguing options. Alabama’s Ty Simpson should be one of the first passers taken, and one NFL analyst recently compared Simpson to a former Dallas Cowboy.
Ty Simpson Earns Comparison to 4-Time Pro Bowler
Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza is the heavy favorite to be the first quarterback drafted, but Simpson could be the next to go. The Alabama product started 15 games for the Crimson Tide in 2025, throwing for 3,567 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions while completing 64.5% of his passes.
It was only Simpson’s first season as a starter, but as the Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner pointed out, Simpson grew up around DI football.
“Simpson was arguably college football’s best processor through Halloween last season,” Baumgardner explained. “The son of longtime Tennessee-Martin head coach Jason Simpson, Ty turned 4 a day before Jason was introduced as the program’s head coach in 2006- he literally grew up around a football program.”
That experience could alleviate some of the team’s concerns about Simpson’s lack of starting experience. Also, Simpson played great against very tough competition in the SEC.
Simpson isn’t the most athletic quarterback, and he doesn’t have the biggest arm, but he does many things well. The quarterback has been compared to Brock Purdy, but Baumgardner thinks there’s another quarterback Simpson could end up being very similar to.
“At his best, Simpson is a more athletic version of Brock Purdy. In time, perhaps, a better comp might be Tony Romo: a confident processor with great feet and an ability to make plays off platform,” Baumgardner said.
Almost any team would be perfectly happy to land the next Tony Romo. Romo played for the Dallas Cowboys from 2003 to 2016, making four Pro Bowls, and only Dak Prescott has thrown for more career yards as a passer for the Cowboys.
The Romo comparison makes sense for Simpson. Both quarterbacks have a high football IQ, great footwork, and solid arm strength. It will be interesting to see if Simpson can have as much success in the NFL as Romo had.
As mentioned above, Simpson only started for one season in college. However, Simpson looked like a seasoned veteran and wasn’t afraid to air it out for the Crimson Tide.
In 2025, Simpson led the SEC in pass completions and pass attempts. The quarterback earned a solid 85.4 grade from PFSN’s CFB QB Impact metric, which ranked fourth out of all SEC passers.
Mendoza will almost certainly be the first passer drafted, but with so many quarterback-needy teams, Simpson likely won’t have to wait long to find his team.
