As the top college football prospects gear up for their biggest audition this year, Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson has made his move. With the NFL Combine around the corner, prospects know this event can boost their draft stock overnight or send it sliding. Despite the risk, Simpson has decided that he won’t sit this one out. 

“Former Alabama QB Ty Simpson will throw at next week’s NFL combine, per source — an opportunity to solidify his status as a first-round pick,” Pelissero reported via X on February 21. “Simpson is the consensus QB2 behind presumptive No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza, who has said he’ll wait and throw at pro day.”

In a draft class widely viewed as thin at quarterback, Ty Simpson has decided that he wants to compete. Most evaluators believe that Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza will go No. 1 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft. After that? It’s a scramble as no player truly owns the QB2 spot in the 2026 NFL Draft. 

Now, while Ty Simpson could have returned to Alabama, hit the transfer portal, and cashed in on major NIL offers, he declared for the 2026 NFL Draft. Some saw it as risky, as he wasn’t locked into the first round. But when QB Dante Moore chose to return to Oregon, the picture shifted, and suddenly, Simpson’s path to the QB2 spot in the 2026 NFL Draft looked clearer.

However, let’s not forget what Ty Simpson did in 2025. He threw for 3,567 yards, 28 touchdowns, and just five interceptions while playing for the Crimson Tide. Simpson’s arm talent popped, and his pocket footwork impressed analysts. But what made Simpson’s season even more interesting was that he didn’t have a dominant running game to lean on. So, instead, Simpson carried the run game for his offense and added 90 rushes for 93 yards and 2 touchdowns.

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But then came the Rose Bowl, and Ty Simpson exited early against Indiana with an injury after completing 12 of 16 passes for 67 yards. Now, at the NFL Combine, Simpson will have the chance to show up at full health as he had time to recover. But Simpson’s throwing session will be crucial, and so will the athletic testing, as NFL teams will dig into every detail.

If he makes all the throws, Ty Simpson will strengthen his first-round case. If he struggles, Simpson risks slipping in the 2026 NFL Draft. But simply showing up will signal a belief in his abilities to compete at a time when buzz is building about Pittsburgh being a potential landing spot for Simpson.

Ty Simpson draws interest from the Pittsburgh Steelers before the NFL Combine

The Pittsburgh Steelers already have Mason Rudolph and Will Howard as their in-house QB options. Still, veteran QB Aaron Rodgers feels like the most likely starting option for the Steelers in 2026. If Rodgers decides to come back to play next season, Pittsburgh will enter a win-now mode with plans to build the surrounding team. But if Rodgers decides to step back, the Steelers will have to focus on their draft strategy, and that’s where Ty Simpson comes in. 

With Fernando Mendoza expected to be long gone before Pittsburgh picks at No. 21 overall, Ty Simpson could be the only rookie quarterback worth serious consideration in that range. But even as Simpson has drawn interest from many NFL teams, ESPN’s Brooke Pryor recently revealed that the Steelers have already done their homework on the QB.

“In his latest mock draft, ESPN’s Field Yates has the Steelers using their No. 21 pick on Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson,” Pryor wrote. “The Steelers have closely watched Simpson, who threw for 3,567 yards, 28 touchdowns, and five interceptions in his lone season as a full-time starter for the Crimson Tide. But while there is an upside to Simpson, he also struggled with decision-making late in the season. He completed a season-low 49% of pass attempts in the SEC championship loss to Georgia, and four of his five interceptions came in the final six games.”

As Pryor pointed out, the big question for the Steelers would be which version of Ty Simpson they should trust. Injuries played a role in Simpson’s dip in production in the back end of the 2025 season. He dealt with a rib issue during the Rose Bowl and a back injury against South Carolina. 

Before that game against South Carolina, Ty Simpson completed 70.2% of his passes for 1,931 yards, 18 TDs, and one INT, plus two rushing scores. But after the injury, his completion rate dipped to 60.4%, with 1,383 yards, 8 TDs, and four INTs. Interestingly, Steelers scouts attended four of his games against South Carolina, Florida State, Missouri, and Auburn. In those four matchups, Simpson totaled 829 yards, 10 TDs, and zero INTs. Those performances from the QB might’ve left a good impression on the Steelers, as even former quarterback Chase Daniel took notice.

“Ty Simpson was the nation’s best QB before he got hurt & the Steelers at 21 make so much sense. You can’t do it any better than this… the way he gets to his 4th progression is perfect… great pocket presence,” Daniel wrote via X on February 11.

Ultimately, pairing Ty Simpson with Rodgers for a year or two feels like a logical plan for the Steelers. Rodgers isn’t the long-term answer for Pittsburgh, but he can be a bridge. Pittsburgh has searched for stability at the QB position since QB Ben Roethlisberger retired in 2022.

Now, the Steelers can let Rodgers mentor Simpson as the next starter and long-term plan at the QB position. Moreover, the NFL Draft may not answer everything for the Steelers, but Simpson is certainly on the table for the team as they begin their scouting process this year.