Bengals' Job Sunday Just Got a Lot Easier with Titans Trading Star Defensive Tackle

Already favored by 10.5 points Sunday against Tennessee, the Cincinnati Bengals just saw their degree of difficulty plummet further with today’s news of a blockbuster trade sending Titans’ All-Pro defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons to the Chicago Bears.

A first-round pick in 2019, Simmons has been voted to four Pro Bowls and earned his first first-team All-Pro selection in 2025, when he had a career-high 11 sacks.

Simmons, who also has two second-team All-Pro nods, already has four sacks this season, giving him 46.5 in his career.

Among defensive tackles, Simmons 46.5 sacks rank sixth since 2019 behind Chris Jones (64), DeForest Buckner (54.5), Aaron Donald (51.5), Cameron Heyward (48), Leonard Williams (46.5).

Bengals head coach Zac Taylor talked about facing Simmons during his Wednesday news conference.

“He’s arguably up there with all of the top guys,” he said. “I hate to rank a No. 1. He’s the opponent this week. He’s really good. He gets off the ball. He’s really difficult in one-on-one situations and double-team situations. Really good against the run. Good against the pass.

“If you’re not planning for him, you’ll have some problems.”

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow was asked about Simmons as well.

“He's really big. He's really strong. He's really fast,” Burrow said. “That's usually a good combination. He's really tough. Seems to love what he does, and you put all those things together, you get Jeff Simmons.”

Simmons sacked Burrow three times in the 2021 Division Round playoff game the Bengals won 19-16.

And Simmons was instrumental in drawing double teams that allowed the Titans to sack Burrow another six times for an NFL-playoff record nine.

In 2022, Simmons punched Bengals center Ted Karras at the end of the game and drew an $11,139 fine from the league,

Today’s move changes the Bengals’ plan, but Tennessee has depth at the position.

Listed behind Simmons on the Titans depth chart is Solomon Thomas, the No. 3 overall pick in 2017. But the 30-year-old Thomas hasn’t had a sack in his last 26 games.

The starter next to Thomas will be John Franklin-Myers, a fourth-round pick in 2018 who also is 30 years old.

Franklin-Myers has 1.5 sacks in four career games against the Bengals while playing for the Jets and Broncos.

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