Simpson ahead of draft: 'I'm ready wherever I go'
NFL draft prospect Ty Simpson joins Mike Florio to discuss his draft process and why he's ready to make an immediate impact for whichever team drafts him.
Video Transcript
Hey, joining us now, one day before the biggest day of his football career, the draft Thursday, Ty Simpson, Alabama quarterback.
Ty, how are you?
I'm great, Mike.
How you doing?
Good.
Give me, give me one word to describe how you're feeling on the eve of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Ecstatic.
I mean, I'm just super blessed, honestly.
I'm trying to put myself in your shoes.
Is it kinda like night before Christmas, like can't wait to, to get it going, won't be able to sleep, thinking about all the different possibilities?
When that package is unwrapped, what's gonna be inside of it?
What team logo is gonna be on that- that hat?
Yeah, I hadn't slept, in two days, honestly.
I really haven't felt this feeling since I was a little kid.
Like you said, like a night before Christmas.
So, you know, I probably won't sleep tonight, but I have my family here and- and my boys, teammates, so, I'll, kick it with them.
and, you know, we'll see what happens tomorrow.
It's a long process.
I know they call it a job interview.
I don't know of any other job where the interview lasts for weeks and weeks and weeks.
Do you get to a point where it's like, "Can we just, can we just get this thing over with?"
Did you get to that point at some point in advance of today?
Yeah, it was about after the combine.
It was, No, but seriously, it just is, it's an ongoing process that you can't control, which is, you know, the biggest thing.
But, you know, for a- for a guy like myself, I really wanna be a part of the team.
You know, I wanna be a part of something that's bigger than myself.
I wanna meet my coach, wanna, you know, get my relationships going with my teammates.
so you know, I, I'm, I'm looking forward to, you know, whatever city, whatever team, I'm going to, to, you know, be able to, you know, get my hands on a- and start, you know, molding that clay and, you know, building relationships.
That's one of the craziest things about it.
You're gonna hop a plane somewhere in the continental United States, we just don't know where.
You don't know where, and you're gonna find out.
Do you spend time, like, looking at the map, just like, "I wonder if I'm gonna be flying here.
I wonder if I'm gonna be flying there.
I wonder if I'm gonna be driving here."
This one may be close enough to drive to.
Have you done any of that?
Yeah, I certainly have.
but I think my mom has looked into it more than I have.
I mean, wherever I go, whatever climate, whatever, you know, type, wherever the, you know, country I'm at, like, I'm- I'm gonna be ready to go and I'm just gonna be, you know, ecstatic and, and super blessed.
Hey, and if it is close enough to drive, it would have to be in a Toyota because- That's right Toyota has made you available to us today, and we appreciate our friends at Toyota very much.
Tell us what you have going on with them as the draft approaches.
Yeah.
you know, I'm honored to help Toyota roll out the NFL Red Carpet, to host a flag football training camp here in Pittsburgh, for- for girls.
so it's an ex- exciting spar- exciting part to put a spotlight, on girls and flag football.
and I'll be coaching some drills, so it'll be a, it's a great experience and I'm, you know, super happy and I'm glad to be, partnering with Toyota.
I don't know if you saw the flag football thing they did last month, but the tackle football players got an education, to say the least, on how different flag football is from helmet and pads football.
Yeah.
I certain- I- I watched some of it.
It was more about watching Brady and Gronk get back in action.
for- for a guy who's, what, he's 45 now, he- he's still got it.
So, maybe- maybe I'll get out there today a- and try to show off some moves.
So again, I try to put myself in your shoes 'cause this is something I've never experienced, but as you're sitting in the green room on Thursday, when, when does, in your mind, the- the window open where the phone could ring?
I mean, I think it can open between anywhere from 2:00 to, you know, 32.
I mean, it's- it's just kind of one of those drafts to where you're right, like there's so many, you know, so many questions, so many trades, so much uncertainty.
it's all out of my control.
you know, I- I- I certainly think that, you know, I wouldn't be here if I don't, you know, think I'm gonna get my name called.
but if I don't, then it's part of it.
but I just know that I'm super blessed and, you know, wherever God puts me, I'm gonna be excited and I'm gonna, you know, s- be process-oriented a- and go get after it.
Great quarterbacks are always prepared for everything.
And look, we don't know what's gonna happen.
Nobody knows what's gonna happen.
That's part of this, and we've seen all sorts of things happen at the draft.
But do you have a number in mind where it's gonna be like, you know, the tie gets ripped open, the button gets unbuttoned, and it's like, come on, man.
When, when is this, when is this phone gonna ring?
Yeah.
I don't really have a number, just like I said, 'cause there's so much uncertainty.
You know what I mean?
I, I just know that, you know, quarterbacks can be taken at any time, and it's just something to where I gotta be ready.
Do you have a certain number of teams, and- and you don't have to tell me the names i- if you don't want to, and I'm not pressing you to, but just, like, a number of teams that you believe are the hot spots, the ones that are most likely to draft Ty Simpson?
I mean, yeah, there, there's certainly some teams I have in mind, but there's, you know, from everybody I've talked to, there's a team that I hadn't even spoken to that wants to be a part of it.
You know what I mean?
it's just kind of the crazy thing about, you know, one, the position I play, and then two, how the draft is.
Like, you know, nobody, nobody really knows.
but, you know, what, what's odd about this year is, right, like, you know, so many teams have, you know, two picks in the first round.
You know, somebody can trade back, somebody can trade up.
some team that's not even in the first round could come up.
It- there's just so much uncertainty and so much, you know, chaos that can happen, but it's- it's part of it, right?
It's part of the It's like March Madness, but in April with the draft for football, so it's, it- it's super surreal and, it's super exciting.
You know, that's a great point 'cause we've seen that happen.
Just a couple of names that come to mind, Teddy Bridgewater in 2014, Lamar Jackson in 2018.
A team swings back into the bottom of round one, and it happens just out of the blue.And, and that, I mean, that's a possibility for a guy that, especially at the quarterback position and the five-year contract that comes with it, that's a possibility as well if you're still around as, and we don't know, as the first round is coming to a conclusion.
Yeah, certainly, right?
Like, you know, that's, that's certainly a, definitely a scenario.
but you know, some, some scenarios have me at, you know, 33, 34, like this, you know, you, you never know.
I, I just know that I'm gonna be ready, and I'm gonna be You know, wherever I go, I'm gonna be blessed, and that's, I'm pretty content with that.
I, I mentioned before we started, we had a chance to talk at the scouting combine.
It was a whirlwind for you.
It was a whirlwind for us because we're talking to one guy after another.
But if I recall correctly, and, and I think the memory was jarred by something you said earlier, one of the weirdest parts about this is, this is the first time in your life you don't have a team, and you've always had a team from the time you started playing football.
And now you're just kind of floating around like, "I want a team.
Can I just get a team, please?"
That's exactly right.
I mean, you know, you're, you're part of y- your team.
I've been part of Alabama for four years, been part of Westview High School before that.
You know, I'll always be a part of UT Martin 'cause of my, my family.
But now it's like, you know, I don't know who to cheer for.
I don't know who to, you know, be, be a part of.
Like, you know, what city I'm gonna live in.
and that's always been something that, you know, h- has been, you know, easy for me because I, I've known what's gonna happen.
Now I don't.
So it's, it, it, it's, it definitely, it, it, it stinks.
I don't, you know, enjoy it.
But it's kinda, you know, it's new and it's, it, it's different, so that's, that part's gonna be fun.
You've talked a few times about the reality, and this is part of college football, and it's a good thing that players have financial opportunities.
Players with eligibility remaining have decisions to make.
You have opportunities to continue your college career with other programs.
Did they stop?
Like, was there a point where they just leave you alone and say, "All right, we're done"?
Or do you still hear from colleges like, "Hey, you know, we're, we're, we're still here if you wanna change your mind"?
No, I hadn't heard from anybody.
I, I'm, you know, I'm in the NFL draft.
I hadn't looked back.
Like, there was nothing that I was, you know, really worried about.
Like, I'm, you know, here in Pittsburgh, enjoying myself, being where my feet are, and I, you know, I'm ready to take the next step and be an NFL quarterback.
You know, I talk about flying somewhere and driving somewhere.
Hell, you may not have to go anywhere.
May- maybe not, I mean- You may already be there.
Yeah.
You know, h- how crazy, how blessed would that be?
Be in Pittsburgh, my first time here.
I, I love the town.
You know, it's a, it's a gritty town.
You can tell, like, people take pride in being, you know, from Pittsburgh.
and that's how I am.
That's how I grew up.
I take pride being from Martin, being, you know, in that 731 area code.
Take pride in being gritty and playing at the University of Alabama in the SEC.
so I, I would be super blessed, and, and I would love it if I got to play here with Coach McCarthy.
You know, a lot of successful quarterbacks are chip-on-their-shoulder type guys.
Do you have a chip on your shoulder?
And if so, what does it come from?
Well, I don't think that, you know, it, going, being oblivious to this draft process, if I didn't have a chip on my shoulder, I'd be, you know, in the wrong mindset.
I, I Everybody from, you know, interviews to, you know, regular, you know, prospects have talked about, you know, just how polarizing of a player I am, you know, good or bad, in- indifferent.
And it puts a chip on my shoulder just to know that, you know, I keep receipts.
and you know, for everybody who doesn't, you know, doesn't believe in me, that's, that, that's something that, you know, puts a chip on my shoulder and makes me, you know, u- understand that, you know, we've been counted out before.
Think about, you know, this year at Alabama.
so I'm a I, I always keep it in the back of my head, you know, don't be a fan later.
Hey, some of those guys keep that chip on their shoulder until they're 45.
They happen to have won seven Super Bowls, Ty, so that's a powerful thing to have.
That's wise to go.
the notion And look, there's been a lot of talk about this recently because we've seen guys come to the NFL with a lot of college playing experience, and it's translated to quick success.
Bo Nix, Jayden Daniels, just to name a couple.
What do you say, and this could be some chip-on-the-shoulder ammunition, he's only started 15 games?
What do you say in response to this notion that you've had limited college playing experience?
I mean, where do I start?
You know, I, I think, one, I, I've played in more games than 15 games.
You know, my dad's a head football c- college coach.
I played in games my freshman and sophomore and junior year, so you know, I'm not oblivious to playing football.
Two, you know, I think quality, you know, over quantity is a, is a big, you know, thing as well.
You know, I played, you know, 15 games, of really good football.
and my sp- you know, tape speaks for itself.
And then my third thing is, you know, you have to prepare, you know, differently when you're at the University of Alabama.
The NFL system that we ran, the checks, the, you know, the control at the line of scrimmage.
So you know, I, I'm not a, I'm not a quarterback who, you know I don't see myself as a, as a rookie or a, a guy who's just a one-year starter.
I see myself as a guy who prepares, like a 10-year vet, a, a guy who is always gonna be, you know, process-oriented, 'cause that's what Coach Saban taught me, and that's what, you know, Coach DeBoer taught me.
to always, you know, prepare and always the go want to know.
and that's just something that, you know, I kinda take of, of the sense of just, you know, always preparing like a, always preparing, you know, for, for the next step and then, you know, making sure that I, I, I'm, I'm ready.
Well, Ty, I'll let you run.
I got better things to do than to keep hearing dumb questions from me.
But we wish you all the best.
We're excited to see how it plays out.
And it really would be something if all you gotta do is jump in that Toyota and just go a, a mile or two to Steelers' facility and off you go.
So all the best, and, and I'm confident wherever you go, you're gonna find a way to get the most out of your abilities and have a great career, and we can't wait to watch it unfold.
Yeah, appreciate you, Mike.
Thank you.
Means a lot.
