Jets rumor from ESPN reveals level of interest in Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson

The New York Jets secured a starting quarterback for the 2026 season after signing Geno Smith, but Gang Green is still without a long-term solution at the position.

It's a bad year for that to be the case, as the 2026 NFL draft is weak at the position and 2027 is widely viewed as a much better class.

The Jets fell one pick short of Fernando Mendoza, and it's pretty much unanimous that there isn't a signal-caller worth taking with the No. 2 pick.

But the weak quarterback class hasn't stopped the Jets from doing their homework at quarterback, with ESPN's Rich Cimini noting New York has met with, or will meet with, Carson Beck, Drew Allar and Garrett Nussmeier.

The projected No. 2 quarterback in this year's class, Ty Simpson, has also drawn interest from New York, with Cimini reported that the Jets spent a couple of days with the Alabama product down in Tuscaloosa.

"Simpson spent time in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on Thursday night (dinner) and Friday morning (private workout) with the Jets' top decision-makers (general manager Darren Mougey and coach Aaron Glenn) and resident QB gurus (offensive coordinator Frank Reich and quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave)," Cimini reported.

Jets' interest in Ty Simpson is legit

While some might view all this as a smokescreen, Cimini says there is indeed at least some level of interest from the Jets in Simpson.

"The Jets have two first-round picks (No. 2 and No. 16), and the drama will be thick if Simpson is on the board when the Jets are on the clock," Cimini said. Some might be wondering if the Simpson flirtation is a smokescreen. It's not; there is some level of interest. How much remains to be seen. This much is clear: The Jets are doing a deep dive into the QB class."

This certainly adds an interesting wrinkle to the Jets' first round, but it remains to be seen if New York views Simpson highly enough to take him with one of their two selections in the top 16.

If not, the Jets are well positioned to trade back into the end of first round with a pair of picks in the top 12 on Day 2. They could stand pat and wait to see if Simpson will fall to them with their first pick in the second round.

Either way, this is a situation that bears monitoring moving forward.

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