Former Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson is viewed as one of the top signal-callers in the 2026 NFL draft, and he could hear his name called in the first round on Thursday night.

However, Simpson nearly changed his mind on declaring for the draft after a massive offer came through from a program that's no stranger to using NIL and revenue sharing to its advantage: the Miami Hurricanes.

Simpson had said when he declared that he had a $6.5 million offer to join the Hurricanes rather than enter the draft, and during a podcast appearance on See Ball Get Ball with David Pollack, he revealed just how tempting that offer was for him.

"I think the last offer was definitely one that I just had to sit down and consider, because it would have been life-changing money," Simpson said. "It would have made me the highest-paid player in college, and it was something to where I was like, I can't just ignore this. I have to sit down and think about it. That's how I am, I don't want to do anything sporadic. I want to sit down and think it all out, and it really just came down to how I wanted to be remembered and what do I want to do."

Simpson could be set to make even more than that on a rookie deal, which would be a four-year contract featuring a signing bonus. However, per Spotrac, he would need to be selected in the top 35 to break even on the money he turned down.

Ty Simpson will need to be a Top 35 draft pick to secure $6.5M in the NFL this season. https://t.co/GXF9A5bqlv

He's currently projected as a late Day 1 or early Day 2 pick, and in the latest mock draft from ESPN's Jordan Reid, Simpson is slotted to go to the Arizona Cardinals in the second round with the No. 34 pick.

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This article originally appeared on College Sports Wire: NFL draft 2026: Ty Simpson was tempted with lucrative Miami offer