The Chicago Bears made a huge move prior to the NFL trade deadline when they made a deal for superstar defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons with the Tennessee Titans.
While the move was a huge one for the Bears and was a significant upgrade for the Chicago defense, it was a surprising move for Simmons at the time. While the Titans are struggling badly in the AFC South and are in last place in the division, Simmons felt he was a key part of the team and vital to the team's future.
Simmons was surprised when he got the word that he had been traded. “It was one of those things where I didn't think it would happen to me,” Simmons said on the Rich Eisen Show. “I'm on Year 8 here, I was the glue of trying to hold this locker room together. I tried to give the organization so much on the field, in the locker room, at practice and in the community, and that's why I didn't think it would happen to me. I was pissed off.”
Simmons realizes that he is playing a key role for a first-place team, one that has a chance to go to the Super Bowl. He was surprised to be traded but he knows that he has an opportunity with a team that has high aspirations.
Simmons has already played 2 games for the Bears and had he has 10 tackles, 2.0 sacks, 3 tackles for loss and 2 passes batted down.
Simmons earned Pro Bowl honors four times in his career with the Titans and also was a first-team All-Pro.