Simmons by the Numbers: 3 Shocking Datapoints That Saved Touchdown

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Isaac Newton, meet Josh Simmons, rookie left tackle for the Kansas City Chiefs. He’s the NFL equivalent of a Saturn V rocket breaking the sound barrier.

18.35 mph

A 6-5, 310-pound human, Simmons reached a max speed of 18.35 miles per hour in saving a touchdown during the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 20-17 loss to the Eagles. Per Next Gen Stats, that was the third-fastest speed by an offensive lineman over the last two years.

Chiefs rookie left tackle Josh Simmons reached a top speed of 18.35 mph to make a potential TD-saving tackle on Eagles safety Andrew Mukuba (19.70 mph), the third-fastest speed by an OL over the last two seasons.#PHIvsKC https://t.co/sdXSRrdLfb
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 14, 2025

“Yeah, I'd say that was pretty impressive,” head coach Andy Reid said Monday, after watching film. “I mean, for a big guy to be able to run like that, first of all, is something. You got a chance to see his athletic ability and body control and all that.

“Hate to have it in that situation, for it to show up, but that part was impressive. And just the want-to, to get there, I thought was impressive. A lot of guys would in this league would stand around and watch, as opposed to chasing. And he chased, along with the other guys.”

Ohio State Buckeyes offensive lineman Josh Simmons works out during the pro day for NFL scouts at the Woody Hayes Athletic Cente on March 26, 2025. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The situation Reid mentioned, obviously, was Patrick Mahomes’ first interception of the season, a volleyball bounce off Travis Kelce’s hands and into the arms of rookie Andrew Mukuba at the goal line. Simmons didn’t see the interception, having just walled off Nolan Smith’s path to Mahomes.

“I knew what the scoreboard was,” Simmons said in the locker room after the game, “so when I started hearing, like seeing the defense turn around and run, I was like, ‘I’ve got to get around their wall’ and let my speed take me to him.”

25 yards and 12 feet

He did it with a perfect pursuit angle, too. And he covered better than 25 yards before diving at Mukuba’s legs. The slow-motion replay of the tackle could hang in the Louvre. At the end of the chase, Simmons left his feet, Super Man style, to save a 100-yard touchdown return.

Andrew Mukuba, Travis Kelce — Sep 14, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) carries the ball defended by Philadelphia Eagles safety Andrew Mukuba (24) during the second quarter of the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

“I was really mad that I got caught at the end still,” Mukuba said in the locker room after the game. "But it was a good. It was a good changing point of the game. So that's what we needed as a team to kind of finish the game out.

"But I looked to my right and I couldn't even cut back because the lineman was coming. Yeah, I tried to get as much as I can, tried to hit the gas last minute, but he still got me."

Simmons left his feet around the 37-yard line, airborne for about 12 feet before rolling out of bounds on the Eagles’ bench. The tackle forced Philadelphia to start the next series from their own 41-yard line and, while the Eagles eventually scored on a second-effort Tush Push to take a 20-10 lead, Simmons kept Kansas City in the game.

And if you’re curious how fast Simmons ran the 40-yard dash at the 2025 scouting combine, don’t bother looking for the data. It doesn’t exist because he didn’t run, still recovering from season-ending knee surgery that truncated his college career last October.

The surgery, which repaired a torn patellar tendon, allowed him to slide all the way to the end of the first round, where the Chiefs drafted him at 32nd overall after a swap of late-round picks with – of all teams – the Eagles.

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