Mel Kiper Jr. defends Jets' bold Ty Simpson decision in 2026 NFL Mock Draft

The New York Jets need a quarterback as badly as any team in the league, and despite the fact that Aaron Glenn and Darren Mougey will miss out on the opportunity to select Dante Moore with the No. 2 pick after he went back to school. The mock draft predictors have been hard at work connecting the Jets with Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson.

Mel Kiper Jr. believes the Jets will use the No. 16 pick in the Draft, acquired from the Indianapolis Colts in the Sauce Gardner trade, to select Simpson.

In an appearance on his podcast, Kiper defended Simpson from detractors, who he claimed used Simpson as a lightning rod to distract from the failures around him in Tuscaloosa. Kiper said that Simpson's play early in the season warrants consideration as a top pick.

Mel Kiper Jr. defends Ty Simpson as a possible Jets pick at No. 16

Simpson's negatives stem from the fact that his measureables are average, his play under pressure needs some work, and he only has 15 starts to his name. His play tailed off near the end of the year, which has some concerned if he was beating up on some of the also-rans in the league.

However, Simpson showed off tremendous accuracy between the numbers, an NFL arm, and tremendous playmaking skill while overcoming a below-par offensive line and an invisible running game. Simpson is likely going to go in the first round anyway if the Jets decide not to take him at 16.

The Jets will need to look at a thin market, including a free agent class led by veterans like Marcus Mariota and an NFL Draft class that is exceedingly weak outside of projected top pick Fernando Mendoza, and decide if it's not more beneficial to roll on ahead with Simpson as Glenn's franchise quarterback.

The 2027 NFL Draft will decide if the Jets commit to Simpson. On one hand, Jets fans may not like committing to Simpson and bypassing a much stronger class next year. However, fans were sold that exact same script last season, and it has since fallen to the point where there may not be any Day 2 QBs taken.

Simpson is worth considering for the Jets, especially with a coaching staff that needs an infusion of talent if they are going to be taken seriously as a fringe playoff team sometime before the heat death of the universe. However, if he busts, it seems as though multiple regimes will end up feeling the sting.