Tennessee Titans fans and one of the greats the franchise has ever seen, Jurrell Casey, have something in common: they are all excited for what defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons will do in 2021.
Simmons has shown plenty of flashes of having elite potential during his first two seasons. Now that he’s had his first full offseason since entering the league, Simmons is expected to take that next step.
During his retirement press conference on Thursday, Casey said the 2021 season is Simmons’ “time to go shine,” per David Boclair of Sports Illustrated.
“It’s his time to go shine,” Casey said. “It’s his time to get the job done. I left some big shoes out there for him to fill. So, I hope he goes out there and handles it.
“From his first two years now, he’s definitely been doing it. I’m definitely excited to see how he comes [along].”
Simmons is in phenomenal shape, and he’ll have much more help around him after the additions of defensive lineman Denico Autry and outside linebacker Bud Dupree.
Far too often last season, Simmons was limited because teams were able to focus extra attention on him. If all goes well with the new additions around him, that’ll be much more difficult to do.
The rest of the league is starting to take notice of the 2019 first-round pick, as he was recently listed on the NFL’s “Top 100 Players of 2021” list, coming in at No. 78. We have a feeling he’ll be higher on that list in 2022.
