NFL draft: Biggest questions of the first round, including if Alabama QB Ty Simpson will be picked

NFLNFL Draft: Biggest questions of the first round, including if Alabama QB Ty Simpson will be pickedPlus, which edge rusher could go No. 2 to the New York Jets? Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00Ty Simpson of the Alabama Crimson Tide on Jan. 1, at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, Calif.Brian Rothmuller / Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesShareAdd NBC News to GoogleApril 23, 2026, 6:04 AM EDTBy Ben KamisarThe No. 1 pick of the NFL Draft is written in stone — but it could be a rollercoaster ride past that. Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.The first round of this year’s draft appears more wide open than in recent years, thanks to a slew of dynamics, including a lack of top-tier quarterback prospects, a concentration of premium players across non-premium positions, and relative depth at key positions that will have teams debating whether to take a risk early or to sit back see who falls to them at a later round. Add that to the normal twists and turns of the draft, and Thursday could be must-see TV for any NFL fan. “There are schemes that are hard to predict, there are grading systems that are all different,” James Laurinaitis, the longtime NFL veteran and current linebackers coach at Ohio State, told NBC News. “That’s why it’s one of the best dramas on television, right?”Here are five questions that will help to shape how Thursday’s first round shakes out. Will Ty Simpson get drafted in the first round?The worst kept secret this draft is the first overall pick: it’s all but guaranteed the Las Vegas Raiders are going to select Indiana quarterback Francisco Mendoza. But one of the biggest questions is whether another signal-caller will hear his name called on Thursday. There have only been two drafts in the last 20 years where only one quarterback has gone in the first round — 2022, when the Pittsburgh Steelers picked Kenny Pickett, and 2013, when the Buffalo Bills picked E.J. Manuel. T...