Daniel Jeremiah reveals why Ty Simpson has 'most at stake' during pre-NFL Draft process

While Fernando Mendoza is widely considered the top quarterback in the 2026 NFL Draft, the sense is Ty Simpson could be QB2. But there are still questions about where he could go on the board.

Ahead of the NFL Scouting Combine, NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said the pre-draft process will be crucial for Simpson as he looks to cement his status as the second-ranked quarterback on the board. In fact, he thinks the former Alabama star could have “more at stake” than the rest of the prospects.

Behind Mendoza, Jeremiah said a number of teams are likely to slot Simpson as the No. 2-ranked quarterback in this year’s draft. As for whether he could go in the first round, it comes down to a few aspects of the process because of his lack of starting experience.

“I think he probably has the most at stake between where we are today and when we get to the draft,” Jeremiah said Thursday on a conference call with reporters. “[He] is someone who I think most teams will have as the second quarterback. It’s not really so much, ‘Is he No. 2?’ It’s just, how high of a pick is he worthy of? Is he worthy of a first round pick? And when you have the limited number of starts that he has, teams are going to have to get comfortable with that.

“One of the ways they can do that is by A, watching him move around and throw and get a better feel for his physical skillset. And then, probably more importantly, just meeting with him and now seeing how he understands the game. Son of a coach. I think he’ll do really well in that environment. But to try and get beyond that start issue, which is a real thing. So I think he’s got a lot at stake as we go through the rest of the process.”

How Ty Simpson could get into 1st round

Ty Simpson started out the 2025 season – his lone year as the starter – with 2,787 pass yards and 22 touchdowns, to two interceptions, over his first 10 games. But those numbers took a dip across the final five matchups as he threw for 780 yards, six touchdowns and three picks.

Those numbers are part of what makes the discussion around Simpson’s stock especially interesting. In his first Top 50 player rankings late last month, Daniel Jeremiah ranked Simpson as the No. 40 overall player in the draft and his No. 2-ranked quarterback. The former Alabama quarterback did not appear in his latest mock draft this week, though.

However, Jeremiah said Simpson could still find his way into the first round, depending on how the rest of the pre-draft process goes. Not only are there teams who need quarterbacks, but Simpson also seems like he could handle the interview process well when he talks to teams. That could also help answer some questions about the second half of last season.

“He’s in the 30s, 40s range for me, as just a pure grade,” Jeremiah said. “But I wouldn’t be stunned if he ended up going in the first round because there’s enough teams in need at the position and I do think he’ll be impressive going from this point forward.

“At the end of the year, he wasn’t healthy. I thought he played a little bit small when he got in crowds, in some of those games late in the year. Don’t know how much to attribute that to the injuries vs. he got exposed a little bit at that point in time. A lot of homework left to do on him, but I think he’s clearly the second quarterback in this draft class.”