My Two Cents: Wherever Titans Are Going, Taking Simmons With Them a Smart Idea

NASHVILLE — We don't really know what this Tennessee Titans thing is right now. Is it a re-tool? Re-work? Reload? Or, God forbid, a complete rebuild? We don't really know right now, do we?

But one thing we do know with certainty is that the Titans need to keep adding as much talent as possible to this roster to get back to competing for AFC South titles and more in 2023 and beyond.

And regardless of whatever RE word we choose, signing defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons is a huge deal. He is exactly the type of player the Titans need, and it's good that he'll be around, more than likely, for another four years.

Already a two-time Pro Bowl player through just four seasons, the 6-foot-4, 305-pound Simmons had already become a big — no pun intended — fan favorite in Tennessee. He's also damn good, so much so that the Titans made it a priority to get him signed to a long-term deal this offseason, even if it might have taken a little longer than some would have liked, including Simmons.

But it's done now, and the all the I's are dotted and the T's are crossed on the four-year, $94 million deal for the former first-round pick in 2019. That's a lot of money for anyone, including a small-town kid from Mississippi. Ran Carthon, the team's new general manager, knew the importance of keeping Simmons here, and he and the team got it done.

Nashville has become home for Simmons, and the former Mississippi State Bulldog is thrilled to be sticking around.

“I want to be here in Tennessee, I want to play in Tennessee for my career, I love the people in Tennessee,” Simmons said Wednesday during a press conference at the Titans' facility, attending by team execs and Simmons' family and representatives. "When I first met Ran, our first conversation was it. When I sat down and talked to him, some of the stuff he told me, it was like I was going to stay here in Tennessee. I would say Ran kept his word."

Keeping words has been an important theme for Simmons during his time with the Titans. He's had some issues in his life, and the Titans caught a lot of grief for drafting him in the first place back in 2019 after a highly-publicized legal issue when he was arrested for punching a woman. But he promised Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk four years ago that he would never let her down, and he hasn't.

They haven't let him down, either.

“That right there, it hit something inside because, you know, to have a female owner, a lady owner, in the NFL to trust in you so much from kind of the adversity I went throughout my journey to get here, it means so much to me,” Simmons said.

“Miss Amy, I appreciate you so much.”

Simmons' deal includes a $24 million signing bonus and $66 million in total guaranteed money. There is a fifth-year option as well. It's the second-largest contract in the league for a defensive tackle, trailing only the $31.6 million per year averaged by three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald of the Los Angeles Rams.

Simmons, who's still just 25 years old, broke down and cried during his press conference when he started talking about his mother, Brenda Bradley. Growing up wasn't easy. Hell, let's be honest, for them, it was damn hard. So this day, and this contract, means a lot to all of them. It's life-changing, for now and generations going forward.

"My mom, she was a single parent, and just to see the journey we have been on as a family, it's crazy," Simmons said. "I think, man, from house to house, apartment to apartment. Sharing a bed with my brother. Now, we're good.

"It's generational wealth, as we call it. It's who I do it for. Every day I wake up, I think about those hard times where I know my mom didn't feel like it. That's my motivation, my family. To my family, I love and appreciate you.''

Carthon was just a few feet away when Simmons was saying all of that. You could tell it meant a lot to him, too. Without question, Jefferey Simmons is someone he wants on his team for a long, long time.

"There’s a model for what you want a player to be and what you want your organization to look like and I think Jeff is one of those models for us," Carthon said. "So this was something that was a priority to get done."

There's still plenty of work to do, of course. But getting this deal done? It's huge. For everyone involved.

My Two Cents: Wherever Titans Are Going, Taking Simmons With Them a Smart Idea

Watch Jeffery Simmons' emotional press conference

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