John Simon

BIOGRAPHY

John Simon was born on October 14th, 1990 in Youngstown, Ohio. He is a defensive end for the New England Patriots of the NFL.

He attended Cardinal Mooney high school; where he helped lead Cardinal Mooney to three state title games and a regional semifinals appearance. He was Northeast Ohio's defensive player of the year after a senior season where he notched 148 tackles, 11.0 sacks, and three forced fumbles and was a two-time all-state honoree.

He played college football at Ohio State University; he played in 50 career games with 37 starts at Ohio State, totaling 154 tackles, 20.5 sacks and 10 passes defensed. He was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in 2012 following his senior season and became just the eighth player in school history to be called a two-time captain.

Baltimore drafted Simon in the fourth round (129th overall) of the 2013 NFL Draft; he made his NFL debut vs. Cleveland (9/15) and recorded a special team's tackle. He appeared in seven games in a special team's role and made four special teams tackles.

On October 7th, 2014, Simon was signed by the Houston Texans of the Ravens' practice squad; he appeared in 11 games, recording nine tackles, one pass defensed and 1.5 sacks. Also added six special teams tackles.

In 2015 he played in all 16 games for the only time in his career, recording 49 tackles and a career-high five sacks. He also played a major role on special teams, recording seven tackles and one fumble recovery; he appeared in the first postseason contest of his career vs. Kansas City (1/9) and made eight tackles.

During the 2016 season he played in 11 games, notching a career-high 51 tackles, two passes defensed, 3.5 sacks and four tackles for loss. On March 10th, 2017, the Indianapolis Colts signed Simon to a three-year contract. During the season he started nine games for the Colts, recording 27 tackles, three sacks, and one interception returned for a touchdown.

On September 26th, 2018, Simon was signed by the New England Patriots; he appeared in 11 regular-season games with two starts on the defensive line and finished with 17 total tackles and two sacks for a combined loss of 18 yards. Simon contributed in all three postseason contests, making one start, and finished with four tackles and a half-sack of QB Patrick Mahomes in the AFC Championship victory at Kansas City (1/20)