What QB Ty Simpson said about potential Eagles draft target Kadyn Proctor

PITTSBURGH — Standing about 10 feet away from his teammate, Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson flashed a big smile when he heard Kadyn Proctor’s name late Wednesday morning.

“I mean, where do I start? He’s one of my best friends,” Simpson, who had Proctor protecting his blindside during the 2025 season, said of his 6-foot-6, 352-pound teammate.

Simpson, Proctor, and 15 other prospects attending the three-day NFL draft in Pittsburgh took local youngsters and Special Olympics athletes through football drills and played catch with them in the hour preceding media interviews at Hazelwood Green Park, less than five miles from the downtown area.

The joy and energy Proctor displayed during the clinic with kids carried over when the massive offensive lineman spoke with reporters. Proctor, who was a starter for the last three seasons at Alabama and plays with power in the trenches, has taken the predraft process in stride.

» READ MORE: We ranked all of Howie Roseman’s Eagles draft classes: What’s his best haul?

“Having some of my teammates and friends and family come around and just kind of experience this with me, it’s just such a blessing,” Proctor said. “[I’m] just trying to take it in, have fun. It hasn’t hit me yet. I don’t think it’ll hit me until [Thursday night] where I’m sitting in the green room tomorrow and it’s like, ‘Oh, man, about to get drafted.’”

The closeness of the relationship between Simpson and Proctor was palpable. Each player glanced over at the other between questions from media members. Proctor says Simpson has “been doubted his whole career” and added later that he believes his quarterback can be a “Hall of Famer.”

The feeling is mutual for Simpson, who gave insight into the talented left tackle’s character.

“He’s one of the reasons why I stayed at Alabama,” Simpson continued. “I had recruited him [when he was in high school], we just go way back, man, I’m so happy that I get to spend [the draft] with, not only with my left tackle and best teammate, but a true friend and a best friend.”

Proctor took 12 predraft visits with NFL teams, he said, and one of those was the Eagles, who he confirmed brought him to Philly. He reunited with former teammate Jihaad Campbell, who the Eagles drafted in the first-round last year, during the visit.

Keldric Faulk, the Auburn edge rusher who is among the draft attendees, had a front row seat to witness Proctor’s skill set over the last three years. The pair faced each other on either side of the Alabama-Auburn rivalry. It was a matchup that the Auburn star edge rusher circled on his calendar each season.

“He was probably the guy that I looked forward to most playing against because he got every tool in the toolbox,” Faulk said of Proctor. “So it was just fun competing with him. He’s my guy. We knew each other a little bit before we played each other. He’s a really good player, and it was just really fun to play against him.”

What is a team getting in Proctor?

“A wide receiver, a running back, fullback,” Simpson said while laughing. “Honestly, one of the most versatile players in the draft, like that guy is going to play his tail off. He’s going to go hard in practice. He loves ball and then not to [mention] his physical traits. So whoever gets him is going to get a really good player.”

It didn’t take long for Auburn to realize how special Faulk was, not only as a player, but as a person and leader within the program. He appeared in every game as a freshman, was voted a game captain as a sophomore, and became a team captain in 2025, along with being a key voice on the team’s leadership council.

That growth for Faulk, who oozes talent at 6-5, 276 pounds with plenty of room to grow his pass rushing profile, has come up in conversations with teams across the NFL.

“I had leaders on my team my freshman year, and I learned from them guys, and then really just had the leadership role thrown on me my sophomore year, and then I just had to adapt to it,” Faulk said. “A lot of teams were asking, ‘Would I bring the same energy to that locker room? I say, ‘Yeah, for sure.’ Of course, it would take time, because I would have to first earn the respect of the guys in there.”

“I definitely want to bring my leadership style down to the to the NFL, for sure.”

» READ MORE: 2026 NFL mock draft 4.0: Will the Eagles stand pat or make a first-round trade?

His leadership certainly caught the attention of the Eagles, who brought the edge rusher in for a predraft visit, Faulk told The Inquirer. He called the Eagles “good people” and added that he’s “anxious to see like, where I would end up fitting in. But man, that defense is really good in itself and just to be considered is a blessing.”

NFL teams have lauded Faulk’s versatility, he says. While he’s an edge rusher by trade, he played multiple alignments in Auburn’s defense, majoring as a run-stuffer and relying mostly on his athleticism to win as a pass rusher.

Faulk’s range in the draft is uncertain, with mock drafts projecting him as high as No. 11 overall to the Miami Dolphins and even available late in the first round. If he wasn’t already, Faulk will certainly considered by the Eagles if he’s available when they pick 23rd overall.

After taking part in the clinic earlier in the day, Arizona State wide receiver prospect Jordyn Tyson joined Simpson in a separate event at Steelers wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr.’s girls’ flag football camp in the Shadyside neighborhood of Pittsburgh Wednesday evening.

Tyson, who is projected to come off the board well before the Eagles pick at 23, joined Pittman and Simpson to give teenage girls advice on route running and took part in drills himself.

The looming A.J. Brown trade possibility has highlighted the Eagles’ potential interest in the top wideouts, and Tyson is part of that list. In a media session between drills at the camp, Tyson told The Inquirer that he took a predraft visit to Philly.

“Aaron Moorehead, the [Eagles] receiver coach, was really cool. We were on the lobster machine, which is basically like a tennis ball shooter. That was really cool. And did a couple other games with him as well,” Tyson said.

He later added: " I played [Eagles head coach Nick] Sirianni in H-O-R-S-E too. I beat him."

Tyson’s name has been trending for weeks as a player that could fall in the draft, because up until last Friday, he had declined to work out via the NFL Scouting Combine or his pro day, and has a lengthy injury history that saw him miss games in every season in college.

He quieted the noise with a private workout in Arizona where the Eagles were one of 18 teams in attendance. By all accounts, the wide receiver shined in his workout, and has reemerged as an early first-round candidate.

Still, keep Tyson in mind. In a draft that is unpredictable with the lack of quarterbacks beyond Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza and premium players at non-premium positions, he could be available later than expected, especially if teams are concerned with his injury history.

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The Eagles have a solid stash of draft picks (8) and, for a team just one season removed from winning the Super Bowl, a lot of positions that need to be addressed. Several elite members of the offensive line could be on the verge of retirement, while the wide receiver corps appears destined to lose a dynamic member. After bolstering the defense in the early rounds of the draft in recent years, will general manager Howie Roseman pivot this spring? The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane and Devin Jackson combine their reporting and analysis to forecast how the Eagles might attack the 2026 NFL Draft, which gets underway Thursday in Pittsburgh. Listen here.

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