BIOGRAPHY
Jeffery Simmons was born on July 28th, 1997, in LaSalle Parish, Louisiana. He plays defensive end in the NFL.
In his early years, Simmons attended Noxubee County High School where he was named the nation’s No. 10 overall player and the No. 2 defensive end by Scout.com. He was also named a five-star prospect by Rivals.com and Scout.com, a four-star prospect by 247Sports.com and ESPN.com and was named the top-rated player in Mississippi by Rivals.com and 247Sports.com. As a high school senior in 2015, he helped Noxubee County win its second straight MHSAA Class 4A State Championship with a 12-4 overall record. He finished second on the team with 105 tackles, led the Tigers with 20.5 tackles for loss, 18.5 sacks, 21 quarterback hurries, three blocked field goals, and two blocked punts, and also forced two fumbles, recovered two fumbles, broke up five passes and recorded an interception.
After he finished high school, Simmons committed to the University of Mississippi State where as a freshman in 2016, he played in 12 games with three starts at defensive tackle and finished with 40 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and four quarterback hurries, led All-SEC freshman and tied for the team lead with two forced fumbles. He also became the first MSU defensive lineman to earn Freshman All-SEC honors since Chris Jones in 2013 and was named to the SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll. Simmons made his collegiate debut on September 10th against North Carolina where he had an immediate impact with four tackles, two tackles for loss and one forced fumble and he had his first collegiate start on October 22nd at Kentucky where he produced a season-high six tackles and added a key forced fumble in the fourth quarter that led to a recovery for a touchdown. As a sophomore in 2017, Simmons started all 13 games and tallied 60 tackles, five sacks, 12 tackles for loss, 41 quarterback pressures, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and one pass defended. He also recorded three total blocked kicks and punts, becoming the first SEC player since 2004 to lead the nation in the category. On September 9th at Louisiana Tech, Simmons registered two touchdowns, providing his first touchdown when he skied into the air to block a punt and recovered the ball for a score. He added a fumble recovery, a 90-yard return for a score and also blocked a field goal in the contest. By the end of the season, Simmons was named first-team All-SEC by AP, Coaches, and PFF and was a Bednarik Award Semifinalist. He added the 2017 SEC Academic Honor Roll recognition and was twice named the SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week against LA Tech and LSU. In his junior season in 2018, Simmons appeared in 13 games with 12 starts and led the team and ranked fourth in the SEC with 17 tackles for loss, which made up the third-highest total in school history. He also tied for second in the SEC among defensive linemen with 63 total tackles and added a pair of sacks, one forced a fumble and four passes defended. Simmons finished the campaign with the fourth-overall grade of 91.6 and third-overall run-defense grade with 93.2 among the nation’s interior defensive linemen. He also was named a Bednarik Award Semifinalist and won the 2018 Conerly Trophy by the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum as the top player in Mississippi and was named second-team All-American by AP and The Athletic and first-team All-SEC by AP and Coaches.
After his junior season, Simmons entered the 2019 NFL Draft where he was selected in the first round by the Tennessee Titans and on May 22nd he signed a four-year contract with the team.
He made his NFL debut the next day against the Los Angeles Chargers. In the game, Simmons recorded 4 tackles and sacked Philip Rivers once in the 23–20 win. The Titans finished with a 9-7 record, qualifying for the playoffs, with Simmons starting all seven games from weeks 8 to 15, recording 32 tackles, two sacks, and one pass deflection.
In the playoffs, the Titans won upsets over the New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens before losing the AFC Championship game against eventual Super Bowl champions, Kansas City Chiefs, with Simmons playing in all three games. In the Divisional Round against the Ravens, Simmons recovered a fumble forced by teammate Jurrell Casey on Lamar Jackson during the 28–12 road victory.
In 2020, during Week 3 against the Minnesota Vikings, Simmons recorded his first sack of the season during the 31–30 road victory. In Week 9 against the Chicago Bears, Simmons forced a fumble on running back David Montgomery that was recovered and returned by teammate Desmond King for a 63 yard touchdown during the 24–17 win. Simmons was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in Week 9.
In 2021 he was both a Pro Bowler and an NFL All-Pro.
The Titans picked up the fifth-year option on Simmons' contract on April 27, 2022.
In 2023, Jeffery Simmons made his 2nd Pro Bowl.
