588062450 1260973302736579 7895499038698493089 N — Ty Simpson is headed to the NFL Draft (University of Alabama Athletics)

When Ty Simpson declared for the NFL Draft last week, it marked the end of his career at Alabama. But there was reportedly still opportunities for the quarterback to take his talents to other college programs.

According to a recent report from On3, offers of at least $4 million rolled in from places like Miami, Tennessee and Ole Miss. Miami’s offer got as high as $6.5 million.

Simpson started just one season at Alabama and had another year of eligibility remaining but he decided to officially declare for the Draft instead of staying at the collegiate level another season.

“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. I would have lost everything that I built at Alabama.”
Ty Simpson via On3

‘That’s the way I wanted to go out’

Simpson 2 E1759421808569 — Ty Simpson (University of Alabama Athletics)

The decision from Simpson does not come as a surprise to most Crimson Tide fans. The quarterback had every chance to leave Alabama when he was a backup to Bryce Young and Jalen Milroe but he chose to stay in the program, waiting for his chance to shine.

“I know people always say it’s not about the money, and I could have made way more money somewhere else, but I was happy at Alabama and wanted to stand on what I built there. That’s the way I wanted to go out.”
Ty Simpson via On3

Simpson admitted he wasn’t sure what to do when the big NIL offers started coming in. But like many Alabama players in recent years, he sought out the advice of former coach Nick Saban.

According to the story from On3’s Chris Low, Saban’s message was simple: Take the money out of it. If everybody was offering you zero dollars, what would you want to do? Would you want to come back and play college ball, or would you want to go play NFL ball?

And that’s what helped him let the current Alabama coaches know about his final decision.

“KD and Coach Grubb have been so good to me. I’m sure they were wondering what was going on because they wanted a decision from me last Thursday so they could start building their roster for next year. I was honest and told them what I’d been offered, but that I just couldn’t do it because of everything I stood for and what Alabama had meant to me and the legacy that I built there.”
Ty Simpson via On3

Now, he could become the second quarterback off the board in April’s NFL Draft.

2026 NFL Draft

Last year, every player drafted in the first 28 picks received a 4-year contract worth at least $4 million per year. All top 10 picks received a contract worth at least $6.5 million per year.

Here is where current mock drafts have Simpson, after Oregon’s Dante Moore announced he was returning to school for one more season: