Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but the New York Jets have a quarterback problem.
It’s been nearly 20 years since the Jets have had the same signal caller under center for more than five seasons, with Chad Pennington being the most recent, having played for the team from 2002 to 2007.
They’ve had multiple swings at the position, drafting Mark Sanchez, Geno Smith, Christian Hackenberg, Sam Darnold, and Zach Wilson with premier picks, just for all to flame out.
New York has even tried the veteran route, bringing in Ryan Fitzpatrick, Aaron Rodgers, and Justin Fields.
Nothing has worked for the Green & White.
But just because you’ve missed on your recent attempts, it doesn’t mean you stop shooting, and it could be time for the Jets to take another swing at drafting a quarterback in 2026.
Mock Draft Has Jets Selecting Alabama’s Ty Simpson
In a recent mock draft from Athlon Sports’ Luke Easterling, the New York Jets were projected to select Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the fifth overall pick.
In what would be their most recent swing at drafting a franchise signal caller, they would go back to the Crimson Tide quarterback well that got them the team’s most famous quarterback, Joe Namath, back in 1965.
“There are big needs to fill on defense after trading away both Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams, but nothing matters if you don’t have a franchise quarterback,” wrote Easterling.
“Simpson struggled a bit this past weekend against Oklahoma, but he’s still displayed high-level traits throughout the season that will get NFL scouts excited about his potential. He would give the Jets a long-term upgrade at the game’s most important position.”
Simpson, only a one-year starter for Alabama, has shot up draft boards since starting his season with the Crimson Tide.
In 10 games, Simpson has completed 66.9% of his passes for 2787 yards, tossing 22 touchdowns to only two interceptions in the process.
He’s helped guide Alabama to the fourth-ranked team in college football and has displayed some tantalizing traits that NFL scouts would seemingly fall in love with.
Do the Jets Need to Draft a Quarterback in 2026?
While almost every NFL mock draft you’ll read over the next few months will have the New York Jets drafting a quarterback with their first-round pick in 2026, they don’t necessarily need to.
After their trade deadline fire sale, New York netted three first-round picks over the next two years, and shouldn’t feel pressured to take a quarterback just because they don’t have one.
If they don’t fall in love with Simpson, or miss out on other prospects such as Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza or Oregon’s Dante Moore, they could always go the veteran quarterback route again in 2026 and wait until 2027 to get their guy.
After all, with all the draft capital they’ve acquired, they can move up the board if they really want to.
The Fields experiment has certainly left a sour taste in Jets fans’ mouths, but there could be some bridge quarterback options available this spring that weren’t available last year.
Mac Jones, Kirk Cousins, and Geno Smith are names that have been floated, and could all excel behind the Jets’ well-constructed offensive line.
But in the NFL, you’re usually only as good as your quarterback is, and until New York finds their franchise guy, they’ll be in the same spot they’ve been since Namath left town.
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