“I’m a different breed,” Jeff Simmons says ahead of year eight with Tennessee Titans

NASHVILLE, Tn. – Jeffery Simmons is coming off his most productive year with the Titans, and after seven seasons in Nashville, No. 98 has proven he’s not only among the elite in Tennessee, but also in the entire league.

“Jeffrey’s an interior rusher and he’s arguably the best one in football,” head coach Robert Saleh said. “Our job is to find ways to get him one-on-ones. The more we can get him, the more we’re going to win.”

67 total tackles, 17 tackles for loss, and a career-high 11 sacks are the numbers Simmons put up in 2025.

He plans on bringing the mindset that helped deliver that production with him into 2026.

“Each and every day I wake up is, ‘how can I separate myself from everyone else?'” Simmons said. “‘How can I be the best version of myself? How can I be better than yesterday?’ I kind of have that mindset that I’m not everyone else. I’m a different breed.”

Going into his eighth season as a Titan, Simmons has seen his share of coaching overhauls in Nashville, but for his new coaches this year, it didn’t take them long to figure out just the kind of athlete Simmons is.

“He sets the standard and the pace of a defense,” defensive coordinator Gus Bradley said. “The standard is there, the pace of how we want to go about doing things, and so you just feel that when he’s in the building.”

“He’s a leader on and off the field,” defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton said. “His work ethic and the way he approaches it is infectious. When some of your well-known players have that type of mentality and attitude, man, you got something going.”

Simmons hasn’t spent too much energy thinking ahead past training camp, but his ambition for 2026 at the core is pretty simple.

“I want to win. The biggest goal is to win,” Simmons said. “I think that’s the only thing I can speak on right now. I don’t want to look too far ahead. I have what we got. After tomorrow, it’s ‘How can I be the best Jeffery when I leave here after tomorrow to come back July 28th ready to roll?'”

Wednesday concluded minicamp while the squad will report back for training camp at the end of July.