Jeffery Simmons
We start this write-up about Jeffery Simmons with a clear disclaimer: he may not even play in 2019 while rehabbing from a torn ACL. The best-case scenario has the Mississippi State product returning some time in December, but the Titans may simply choose to hold him out with an eye on his future.
If Simmons can return, he’ll bolster a Titans defense that, as we mentioned earlier, wasn’t great at getting to the quarterback last season. He’s got the capability to be a force up the middle when it comes to pressuring opposing quarterbacks.
On top of that, Simmons is a big body who can clog the middle and be a real shot in the arm to the team’s run defense. Tennessee was ranked No. 18 against the run in 2018, which undoubtedly hindered this defense from potentially being the best in all of football.
Jeffery Simmons just posted this on Instagram. Looks like the rehab is going great. pic.twitter.com/YYMjx9CGLd
— Titans Tape (@TitansTape) July 3, 2019
Granted, this all still relies on the aforementioned best-case scenario of his return, and the fact that he’d be in top form upon said return. However, we’re dealing with a potentially special player who, if not for his injury, could have been a top-five to top-10 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.
The Titans defense is already really good with the pieces they have in place ready for Week 1. With that said, Simmons is one of the few pieces that can take this defense from really good to truly special—and by special, we mean a Super Bowl-worthy kind of special, because he fills in one of the few holes this defense has left.