I don’t know 3 things about Ty Simpson’s future, and neither do you.
One is that you and I don’t know if he’ll be a first-round quarterback in the 2026 NFL Draft. Despite what he was reportedly told before declaring for the next level, I won’t pretend that’s imminent, even in what’s expected to be a thin quarterback class during a quarterback-needy time across the NFL.
Another is that you and I don’t know that Simpson will become a franchise quarterback. He could check a ton of boxes as an NFL-ready guy, but he could also still fall short in some key areas (throwing under pressure) and/or end up in the wrong situation. The latter could still be true if his late-Round 1 projection holds and he goes to a team like Pittsburgh or Cleveland (they acquired Jacksonville’s 2026 Round 1 pick in the Travis Hunter trade), both of whom will have new head coaches.
The last — and perhaps most controversial — thing that you and I don’t know is whether Simpson would’ve played at a high level at one of his high-priced transfer portal suitors. Why not? Go ask decorated preseason quarterbacks like Garrett Nussmeier or Cade Klubnik what returning to school for another year did for them, and that was with having the advantage of having the same offensive play caller, which Simpson obviously wouldn’t have in a new destination.
According to the former Alabama quarterback, he had $6.5 million suitors in the transfer portal after he announced his intentions to forgo his last year of eligibility and enter the 2026 NFL Draft.
NEW: Massive NIL offers from other schools couldn't delay Ty Simpson's NFL dreams, he tells @ClowfbTennessee, Miami and Ole Miss were offering $4M, and the Hurricanes upped it to $6.5M“Miami was kind of like, ‘All right, we’re moving on,’ and then they lost out on Sam… pic.twitter.com/5crCEiq7qH
— On3 (@On3) January 14, 2026If you read that tremendous insight from Chris Low, you saw this noteworthy quote that came from his interview with Simpson.
“Everybody would just remember me as the guy who took all this money and went to Miami or Tennessee for his last year. But I was a captain. I put my hand and footprints in the cement at Denny Chimes,” Simpson told On3. “I would have lost everything that I built at Alabama.”
Scoff if that if you choose. I’ll choose to salute it.
Why? Isn’t Simpson stupid to turn down more money than he could’ve gotten with his projected NFL Draft slot? Won’t the Darren Rovells of the world point out Simpson’s rookie salary compared to that $6.5 million offer and say that he cost himself millions by choosing the NFL? Couldn’t he have double-dipped and made that money in the transfer portal while also getting Round 1 money in 2027?
Maybe. Don’t care.
I care about acknowledging that there are long-term benefits (both monetary and non-monetary) to sticking with 1 school
That’s not to say that Simpson is the first person to think bigger picture with a decision like that.
Last year, Quinn Ewers was criticized for declaring for the NFL Draft and being selected in the 7th round instead of transferring from Texas, who was expected to move on to Arch Manning. Ewers reportedly turned down an $8 million offer from other schools because he sought to preserve his relationships at Texas. Ahead of his 3rd start as a rookie with the Dolphins, he explained why he made that decision (via ESPN).
“I felt like what I built with my teammates at Texas and the legacy that we built, I didn’t want to mess anything up there,” Ewers said. “… To me, it’s not about the materialistic things of this world because it comes and goes. What’s important to me is the relationships that are built along the way. And I didn’t want to disrupt or rub anybody the wrong way, being selfish and trying to go get money from another team, because I was a lifelong Longhorn.
“Growing up, I wanted to play there. Ended up being the quarterback there, living on my dreams. My 10-year-old self wouldn’t transfer away and go somewhere else. So, at the end of the day, that was the right decision for me.”
If you don’t think that was appreciated in Austin, you’re crazy. Ewers will forever have a home at Texas as a prolific former 3-year starter who could’ve been vindictive that the Longhorns chose Manning over him. Did he have to do that? Of course not. After all, we’re no longer in an area in which the departing school gets a say in a transfer’s future destination. Unlike Simpson, who likely would’ve been welcomed back as the starter at Alabama, Ewers would’ve had more motivation to find a new home in college knowing that Texas was ready to move on.
And yeah, the irony is that Ewers started his career off by reclassifying to enroll early at Ohio State and transferred back to his home state of Texas after 1 year because “that’s where his resources were.” Clearly, he’s not someone who ignored the financial side of his decision.
The same is true of Simpson.
Being a captain at Alabama is indeed a big deal
It’s the type of deal that’ll carry a ton of weight in that state well past his playing days, much like it did for former Tide quarterbacks/captains like AJ McCarron and Greg McElroy, both of whom returned to post-football work in Alabama. In a perfect world for Simpson, he spends 15 years in the NFL and earns generational wealth that gives him a comfortable post-football life. In a more likely world for Simpson, he makes millions in the NFL and he knows that even as a Tennessee native, he’s always got a home and support in the state where he spent all 4 years of his college career.
If that bothers you, ask yourself this. Are you also a college football purist who wishes that we could turn back the clock to 20 years ago? If the answer to that is a firm, “yes,” than you’re a walking, talking contradiction.
Simpson’s approach might be considered the outlier in this new era of college football, but it doesn’t mean it’s the wrong one. There are just more paths to a legacy than ever.
Take the Carson Beck path. He claimed after his game-winning touchdown in the Fiesta Bowl that leaving Georgia for Miami was “one of the best decisions he could’ve ever made” (H/T Caroline Fenton). It’s hard to argue with Beck considering that after he initially declared for the NFL Draft, he did take the reportedly lucrative NIL deal and the Hurricanes to their first national championship berth in 23 years. Did Beck ruin relationships at Georgia by having this type of season at Miami? Time will tell, though one could argue that the Beck-Georgia relationship was in a different spot post-SEC Championship injury than what Simpson felt he had with Alabama.
What’s undeniable is that whether you’re Simpson, Beck, Ewers or someone else, no 2 situations are exactly the same. We shouldn’t assume loyalty anymore, but we should certainly respect it.
Simpson’s loyalty could speak volumes when he sits down with NFL front offices. Time will tell how they feel about all of his physical abilities, but if the goal is to become the leader of an organization, Simpson’s mindset appears to be well-suited to do just that.
That’s 1 thing I know.
I have all the respect for Ty Simpson after seeing why he turned down transfer portal riches and stuck with his NFL decision Saturday Down South.
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