Jeffery Simmons has become the steady center of the Titans’ roster churn, and that role looks even bigger now as Tennessee gets ready for the regular season on September 13. While the team keeps changing around him, Simmons stays put as the longest-tenured Titan and the clearest face of the franchise.
That status comes from more than just the damage he does on the defensive front. Simmons has built his reputation on putting the team ahead of his own numbers, and that mindset came through clearly when he joined Josh Chambers on The Pivot podcast.
“When I step on the field, I don’t care about anything else but how can I be the best for my team?" Simmons said.
"My first couple years in the league, it was, 'Let me set a goal. Let me set a goal for 10 sacks a year.
Let me set a goal for this many tackles for loss.' But it took me away from the main goal.
Once the game gets going and it’s the fourth quarter, I don’t have a sack, I don’t have a tackle for loss, now I’m chasing plays. Now I’m hurting the defense by jumping out of the gap trying to make a play.
"So as I got older, especially last year, my thing was, how can I really focus on being in the moment? Make the play when it’s there.
Celebrate my teammate, because I know I’m going to get the slide. I know I’m going to get double-teamed, triple-teamed.
But when my opportunity comes to make that play, I can’t not be ready for it. Even when a double team comes, how can I create a one-on-one, even on a double team?
“How can I get to the center? How can I get to a different level to affect the game, affect the quarterback?
That’s just my mindset when I touch the field. I see red.
You got a different color on. It’s red.
You in my way; you’re trying to stop me from feeding my family. That’s just the way I see the game.”
That “feed my family” approach fits Simmons’ game. Big Jeff has the size and the personality to command attention, and opponents know what’s coming. Double teams and even triple teams are part of the deal, and Simmons understands that when he draws that kind of attention, somebody else on the defense gets a chance to make a play.
It’s the kind of attitude that can shape a locker room. When the players at the top are more concerned with helping the group than chasing their own numbers, the whole team tends to follow.
Tennessee has a new coaching staff in 2026 and new faces on both sides of the ball, but leaders like Simmons and Cam Ward give the Titans a clear example to lean on. If the rest of the roster follows that standard, the wins can come too, even if it takes some time with so much change.
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