The Chicago Bears’ blockbuster trade for Jeffery Simmons have made them immediate Super Bowl contenders, combining him with Grady Jarrett to create one of the league's most formidable interior defensive line combinations. However, the Tennessee Titans, as one would expect, received calls from multiple other teams inquiring the availability of the 29-year-old defensive tackle.
Among them was division rivals Jacksonville Jaguars, according to The Ringer’s Tom Pelissero.

“While trading a core player within the AFC South was probably a nonstarter, it’s a reminder that GM James Gladstone is willing to be aggressive in any area that potentially can improve the team, and probably portends more activity in Jacksonville over the next 10 days,” Pelissero noted.

Simmons was acquired in exchange for 2027 and 2028 first-round picks and a 2027 fourth-round selection, along with a 2028 fifth-round pick. As a result, he became the first defensive tackle in the common draft era to be traded for multiple first-round selections.

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The 29-year-old arrives after spending his entire NFL career in Tennessee, who selected him 19th overall in 2019, and brings 46.5 sacks, 72 tackles for loss and 96 quarterback hits across eight seasons. He was named a first-team All-Pro for the first time in 2025 after recording a career-high 11 sacks, and continued producing in a difficult season for the Titans.

Chicago's need for interior disruption was a major factor in the move as the Bears ranked 23rd in interior defensive pass-rush win rate at 13%, while Simmons led the NFL's defensive tackles with a 27% win rate. Simmons will join a defensive front featuring Grady Jarrett and Montez Sweat, who is returning from a two-game suspension, and the move follows their earlier additions of safety Coby Bryant and linebacker Devin Bush.