Terrion Arnold claims Ty Simpson is best quarterback in 2026 NFL Draft

Just hours before the 2026 NFL Draft gets underway in Pittsburgh, Detroit Lions defensive back Terrion Arnold is sticking up for his former teammate, Ty Simpson. Simpson is the consensus No. 2-ranked quarterback available in the Draft, behind Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza.

Mendoza is all but certain to be the No. 1 pick in the Draft by the Las Vegas Raiders. Arnold, however, believes that Simpson is the best quarterback in the class.

“You know, I’m biased, but I think [Ty’s] the best,” Arnold told TMZ Sports. “[He’s] somebody that’s really seen the game from all angles. Like, when it got hard, Ty didn’t run. He was in the smoke, and he put his head down. He worked, and he waited for his opportunity. And when his time came, he was prepared for it. So he’s somebody that you know is going to be prepared for the moment.”

Arnold and Simpson were teammates at Alabama across two seasons (2022 and 2023). While Arnold was racking up accolades such as Freshman All-SEC Team, Freshman All-American, First Team All-SEC, and First Team All-American, Simpson was backing up Bryce Young and Jalen Milroe.

Simpson finally got his chance to shine as Alabama‘s starting quarterback in 2025, passing for 3,567 yards and 28 touchdowns with five interceptions. The Martin, Ten., native was named Second Team All-SEC, and led the Crimson Tide back to the College Football Playoff for the first time in the Kalen DeBoer era. He actually went up against Mendoza in the Rose Bowl, although that did not end too well for Alabama.

Ryan Clark urges Arizona Cardinals not to ‘reach’ on Ty Simpson

On Monday, however, ESPN’s Ryan Clark revealed he isn’t as high on Simpson. He warned the Arizona Cardinals not to go after the former Alabama QB so early in the draft.

“Ty Simpson has so much to work on,” Clark said on First Take. “Ty Simpson can’t be a dude that goes to a bad football team because all of those things that you’re saying about who Alabama was that contributed to Ty Simpson not playing well down the stretch — if somebody drafts him early, they’re probably going to have some of those same issues. So, if you’re the Arizona Cardinals, don’t bid against yourself. Ain’t nobody else going to pick him in the first round.

“You wait. You try to get him later on in the draft, and now you can allow him to progress and sit in the manner that he should, to allow him to accumulate some of the reps that he didn’t get at Alabama. Because when you say, ‘Hey, it was nine games of good football and six games of subpar football,’ we don’t have two other years as a starting quarterback of excellence to compare and contrast that to.”

Simpson will become the 18th Alabama quarterback in program history to be drafted when he hears his name called in the 2026 NFL Draft.