The Tennessee Titans may very well be botching their rebuild.
On Saturday, separate stories surfaced noting that the franchise has no intention of buying and selling standout three-time Professional Bowl defensive sort out Jeffery Simmons, arguably the staff’s most precious commerce asset.
NFL insider Ian Rapoport wrote that following former head coach Brian Callahan’s firing earlier this week, “Seemingly everybody referred to as the Titans to see if star defensive sort out Jeffery Simmons was out there forward of the league’s Nov. 4 commerce deadline.
“These have been instructed clearly that Simmons will not be out there,” Rapoport added.
The Athletic NFL insider Dianna Russini echoed that sentiment, writing, “The Titans are open for enterprise on each participant however QB Cam Ward and defensive sort out Jeffery Simmons.”
Retaining Jeffery Simmons holds Titans again from full-on rebuild
Simmons could be way more precious on a contending staff than spending the remainder of his prime on the Titans, who will not be sniffing the playoffs for the foreseeable future. It is more likely that the draft picks Tennessee would get from buying and selling the gifted defender may very well be a part of the franchise’s subsequent playoff core than Simmons, who’s signed via 2027.
Via six video games in 2025, Simmons has 4.5 sacks. Per Stathead, he leads defensive tackles in quarterback hits (11) and tackles for loss (eight).
Beneath contract for 2 extra seasons after this 12 months, Simmons, 28, would doubtless command a major haul on the commerce market. For a staff like Tennessee that’s in full rebuild mode, that ought to outweigh retaining him on the roster.
The Titans want draft capital for gamers who higher match rookie quarterback Cam Ward’s timeline, and so they may squander a possibility to gather premier picks by holding onto Simmons.
It is often dangerous enterprise for groups to commerce away their greatest gamers, but Tennessee is not in place to profit from Simmons’ manufacturing. It is extra wise for the Titans to ship the seven-year veteran someplace he could make a distinction and for them to decide to the long run. However with just a little over two weeks till the Nov. 4 commerce deadline, Tennessee may very well be poised to make a vital mistake.
