Cardinals Have to Be Careful of This NFL Draft QB Stat

The Arizona Cardinals appear to be heavily in the mix for Alabama Crimson Tide QB Ty Simpson in the 2026 NFL Draft, though his potential arrival won't come without blemishes.

The Cardinals move into draft season with Kyler Murray fully out of the picture and no sustainable plan in his presence. Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew are the top two options in Arizona, though both contracts expire after 2026.

Simpson, after Fernando Mendoza, projects as the second best-quarterback prospect in the class. While the Cardinals highly thought to be connected to the Alabama passer, some are cautious of Simpson and his 15 career starts — all of which came last season.

The Athletic's Dane Brugler, earlier this offseason, highlighted three other quarterbacks drafted in the first round who had 15 or less starts in Anthony Richardson, Mitchell Trubisky and Dwayne Haskins.

QBs with 15 or fewer college starts who went 1st round over the last decade. It's not a disqualifier, but still tough.

Anthony Richardson
Mitchell Trubisky
Dwayne Haskins https://t.co/Qb8ZYvkSbT
— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) January 7, 2026

That's not quite great company for Simpson to be in, although every player needs to be scouted individually.

It wasn't as if Simpson dominated in those 15 games, either. Many criticisms around his game surround his play against more notable opponents.

"Ty Simpson I think would fit great in there," NFL draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said earlier in the offseason.

"We'll see where he ends up going — if he ends up going in the first round then that would take that off the table. But pick 34, it's about right where I have him. So if he were there at that point in time, I think that would be a really solid pick."

Lately there's been steam on Simpson's draft stock rising into the first round, where Arizona would have to move up to snag him. There's some online chatter the Cardinals could contemplate the pick at No. 3, though that seems far-fetched at this point in time.

For those criticisms Simpson faced, there was also notable praise for his athleticism and processing as a quarterback, which translates well to the next level.

The jury is very much out on Simpson, as there's arguments made on either side of his evaluation as a prospect. Arizona will, internally, have to weigh the pros and cons of Simpson throughout the next four weeks.

It could very well end up being a franchise-altering decision.