Death, taxes, and Jeffery Simmons making the NFL Top Players list. The Tennessee Titans defensive tackle checked in as the No. 73 player on this year’s NFL Top 100 list, down 15 spots from where he was ranked in 2023. Big Jeff has made the list, which is voted on by the players themselves, in four consecutive seasons.
Simmons will look to bounce back this season after being limited to just 12 games in 2023 after suffering a knee injury in Week 13 against the Indianapolis Colts, prematurely ending his season.
That said, the 26-year-old continued to be a significant disruptor. He registered 5.5 sacks and 44 tackles, including 10 tackles for loss, 11 quarterback hits, one pass deflection, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.
With key figures Derrick Henry and Ryan Tannehill departing in the offseason, Simmons enters the 2024 season as one of the unquestioned leaders not only along the defensive line but for the Titans overall.
General manager Ran Carthon touched on this in Tuesday’s press conference as the Titans reported for training camp.
“It was always like Jeff was the leader of the D-line group,” Carthon said via AtoZ Sports Nashville. “Now you feel (he) is not only the leader of the D-line group and the defense but the whole team, and you feel it and you see it. The way he goes is the way the group goes, just not in terms of on the field but off the field as well and how he handles his business. He set a great example for those guys, so they have something to follow.”
Simmons and the Titans will hold their first practice of training camp on Wednesday.