Alabama Quarterback Ty Simpson Is Being Offered $6.5 Million In NIL Money To STAY In College (And Not Enter The NFL Draft)

Before this year, Ty Simpson had thrown a total of 50 collegiate passes in three seasons with the Alabama Crimson Tide. He redshirted his freshman year in 2022 and only made sporadic appearances the next two seasons. Simpson finally earned the starting job for the Crimson Tide entering the 2025 season, and he delivered strong results. Simpson finished with 3,567 yards passing, 28 touchdowns, and just five interceptions, leading Alabama to the College Football Playoff quarterfinal.

On January 7, Simpson declared for the 2026 NFL Draft. But he might be reconsidering his decision after seeing the interest college teams still have in him.

Several big-name schools are hoping to convince Simpson to withdraw from the draft and transfer. Miami, which is currently one win away from a national title, has reportedly  offered $6.5 million to Simpson in name, image, and likeness (NIL) money. Tennessee and Ole Miss both put $4 million offers on the table.

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Any of those schools would be a large pay raise for Simpson. He made about $800,000 this past season with the Crimson Tide. His decision will likely come down to whether he thinks another year in college would raise his draft stock for 2027.

There are plenty of teams in this year's draft who are starved for a quarterback. Some mock drafts have linked Simpson to the Pittsburgh Steelers, which would be a pick in the early 20s. Aaron Rodgers is likely on his way out, and the Steelers haven't had a franchise quarterback since Ben Roethlisberger retired in 2022. And if we're being honest with ourselves, the last few years of Big Ben's tenure saw a decline in quality, so it's felt even longer than that.

If Simpson got selected in the late first round, he'd get a contract worth about $16 to $20 million over four seasons. That would be less money his rookie year than the Hurricanes' offer, though he'd likely earn more over the long run.

However, other mock drafts think Simpson would land in the second or third round. If he were to fall to the second day of the draft, his contract would fall accordingly. The No. 33 pick—the first pick of the second round—gets a little over $13 million over four years. The last pick of the third round, the No. 100 selection, receives about $6.6 million over four seasons. And while more second and third-round picks are getting larger guarantees in their contracts, it's still not a given that Simpson would receive all that money if the team that drafted him chose to cut him.

The situation poses an interesting debate: Would you take a surefire large one-year deal to start for a team, or would you bet on yourself to try and get longer-term security, knowing that it might backfire and that you might have to ride the bench for one or more of those seasons?

We'll see how everything unfolds over the coming weeks. Simpson thought he was done with college, but top-level programs are making that choice more difficult than he probably expected.