Titans Jeffery Simmons dropped in defensive tackle rankings by NFL coaches, scouts, and executives

NASHVILLE – It's once again time of year for ESPN's league-wide survey of NFL executives, coaches, and scouts to rank the top 10 players at every position on the field.  This one just means more. It's not some analyst or know-it-all writer like myself sitting behind a keyboard and making assessments. This is coming straight from […]

Sam Phalen
Add as preferred source on Google

NASHVILLE – It's once again time of year for ESPN's league-wide survey of NFL executives, coaches, and scouts to rank the top 10 players at every position on the field. 

This one just means more. It's not some analyst or know-it-all writer like myself sitting behind a keyboard and making assessments. This is coming straight from folks in the league who watch, coach, and scout these players more than anyone. 

Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons is someone who has so often found himself near the top of the list for defensive tackles. But heading into 2024, Simmons fell in the rankings. 

Simmons was once ranked as high as the second-best defensive tackle in the sport. Before the 2023 season, the former Mississippi State defender was still ranked 3rd behind Chris Jones and Aaron Donald.

Aaron Donald announced his retirement earlier in the offseason and was therefore removed from the conversation this year, but Simmons was jumped by two different players and fell to the 4th spot in the 2024 rankings.

Quinnen Williams (NYJ) and Dexter Lawrence II (NYG) both claimed spots in the top 3 while leapfrogging Simmons.

Some of the injuries Simmons dealt with in 2023 may have hindered his performance at times and caused this slight drop. He only played in 12 games and his numbers, which don't jump off the page to begin with, took a slight dip in every area.

But looking at the numbers will never tell the full story when it comes to Simmons. He's seventh among defensive tackles in sacks over the last three season, but anyone who has watched the Titans' defense over the last few seasons knows how impactful Big Jeff is on every single play. 

"When he's focused and sets out to make a lot of plays, he's pretty much unblockable," one NFL head scout told ESPN during the survey. "I think he'll have a big year, similar to [Justin] Madubuike in that same Baltimore scheme last year."

The addition of Dennard Wilson as the Titans' defensive coordinator will bring a scheme to Music City that should put Simmons in a position to succeed. I'm also bullish on T'Vondre Sweat joining Simmons on the interior defensive line and giving him more opportunities to be single blocked. 

Related Articles