Justin Simmons (born November 19, 1993) is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons, primarily with the Denver Broncos. He played college football for the Boston College Eagles and was selected by the Broncos in the third round of the 2016 NFL draft. Simmons also played for the Atlanta Falcons. During his career, he was a four-time second-team All-Pro and two-time Pro Bowler.
College career Simmons attended Boston College, where he enrolled as a communication major in the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences. While at Boston College, he played both safety and cornerback.
In 2012, as a freshman he appeared in all 12 of the Eagles games. He started six games at free safety and one at cornerback. He finished seventh on the team with 52 tackles, he was tied for the team lead with two forced fumbles. In 2013, as a sophomore, he appeared in all 13 games, he recorded 34 tackles, 22 solo tackles, and three pass break-ups. In 2014, as a junior, he started all 13 games, the first seven at free safety and the final six at right cornerback, moving due to injuries on the team. For the season, he led the team with 76 tackles, 63 solo and two interceptions. He finished second on the team with five pass breakups. Before the 2015 season, he was awarded the Jay McGillis Memorial Scholarship Award. For the season, as a senior, he started all 12 games at free safety. He finished the season third on the team with 67 tackles, 49 solo. He was tied for 20th in the nation and second in the conference with five interceptions and tied for first in the conference with three fumble recoveries. He was named Second-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association and ACC head coaches. He was also named Second-team All-ACC by Phil Steele and the Associated Press. He was named to Steele's All-American Fourth Team and ProFootballFocus.com All-America honorable mention.
Professional career Pre-draft He attended the NFL Scouting Combine and had the fastest time in the 20-yard shuttle (3.85s) at the NFL Combine since 2006 (3.81s) and also tied Braxton Miller for the best time in the 60-yard shuttle (10.84s) performed at the NFL Combine since 2014 (10.72s). He was also second overall in the three-cone drill. On March 16, 2016, Simmons participated at Boston College's pro day, but chose to only perform the 40-yard dash (4.53s), 20-yard dash (2.62s), and 10-yard dash (1.56s) and decided to forgo the other combine drills he had already performed well in. He performed private workouts for Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints and attended pre-draft visits with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Detroit Lions. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, NFL draft experts and scouts projected Simmons would be selected in the third round. He was ranked as the fourth best free safety prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com. NFL analyst Mike Mayock and Scouts Inc. ranked him as the sixth best safety prospect in the draft.
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos selected Simmons in the third round (98th overall) of the 2016 NFL draft. He was the seventh safety drafted and was the first of only two players drafted from Boston College. Simmons was the first safety to be drafted from Boston College since Will Blackmon in 2006 and only the second since 2000. 2016
On May 13, 2016, the Broncos signed Simmons to four–year, $3.06 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $645,420.
Simmons entered training camp slated as the primary backup safety. Head coach Gary Kubiak named Simmons the backup free safety to begin the regular season, behind Darian Stewart.
Simmons made his NFL debut in the Broncos' season-opener against the Carolina Panthers and recorded one tackle in the narrow 21–20 victory. Simmons was inactive for the Broncos' Week 3 victory at the Cincinnati Bengals due to a wrist injury. He was sidelined for two more games (Weeks 5–6) due to a small fracture in his wrist. In Week 8, Simmons recorded one tackle and made his first career sack as the Broncos defeated the San Diego Chargers 27–19. Simmons sacked Chargers' quarterback Philip Rivers for a nine-yard loss during the fourth quarter. On November 13, 2016, Simmons leaped over the offensive line and blocked an extra point attempt by New Orleans Saints' kicker Wil Lutz. Had the kick been successful, New Orleans would’ve taken a 24–23 lead with 1:22 remaining in the fourth quarter. The ball was recovered by Broncos teammate Will Parks and was returned for an 84-yard game-winning safety as the Broncos defeated the Saints 25–23. On December 18, 2016, Simmons earned his first career start and recorded two solo tackles during a 16–3 loss against the New England Patriots in Week 15. On December 25, 2016, Simmons started in place of T. J. Ward who sustained a concussion the previous week. He collected a season-high five combined tackles, broke up two passes, and made his first career interception in the Broncos' 33–10 loss at the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 16. Simmons intercepted a pass by Chiefs' quarterback Alex Smith, that was initially intended for wide receiver Tyreek Hill, and returned it for a 38-yard gain in the first quarter. Simmons finished his rookie season in 2016 with 30 combined tackles (25 solo), four pass deflections, two interceptions, and one sack in 13 games and three starts.
2017 On January 2, 2017, Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak announced his decision to retire due to health issues. Nine days later, Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph was hired as the new head coach. Joseph hired Joe Woods to replace Wade Phillips as defensive coordinator. Simmons entered training camp slated as a backup safety but began competing against T.J. Ward to be the starting strong safety after impressing the coaching staff. Head coach Vance Joseph named Simmons the starting strong safety to begin the regular season and elected to release T. J. Ward as part of the Broncos' final roster cuts.
During Week 6, Simmons collected a season-high 11 solo tackles and deflected two passes during a 23–10 loss against the New York Giants. On December 3, 2017, he made seven combined tackles, broke up a pass attempt, and returned an interception for the first touchdown of his career during a 35–9 loss at the Dolphins in Week 13. Simmons intercepted a pass thrown by Dolphins' quarterback Jay Cutler, that was intended for wide receiver DeVante Parker, and returned it for a 65-yard touchdown during the third quarter. In the next game, Simmons injured his ankle while celebrating a strip/sack with Brandon Marshall during a 23–0 victory against the New York Jets. On December 13, 2017, he was placed on injured reserve due to a sprained ankle. He finished the season with 68 combined tackles (49 solo), five passes defensed, two interceptions, one sack, and one touchdown in 13 games and 13 starts.
2018 Simmons entered the Denver Broncos training camp slated as the starting free safety after a promising 2017 season. Head coach Vance Joseph named Simmons and Darian Stewart the starting safeties to begin 2018. In Week 11, he collected a season-high ten combined tackles (five solo) and deflected a pass during a 23–22 win at the Chargers. On December 2, 2018, Simmons made nine combined tackles, broke up a pass, and made his third interception of the season during a 24–10 victory at the Bengals in Week 13. He started all 16 games in 2018 and recorded a career-high 97 combined tackles (71 solo), four pass deflections, and three interceptions while playing every single defensive snap for the first time in his career. On December 31, 2018, the Broncos announced their decision to fire head coach Vance Joseph after they finished with a 6–10 record. He received an overall grade of 60.8 from Pro Football Focus, which ranked 74th among all qualified safeties in 2018.
2019
On January 10, 2019, the Denver Broncos hired Chicago Bears' defensive coordinator Vic Fangio as head coach. Fangio was a part of former Denver Broncos' head coach John Fox's staff in Chicago, as well as the new defensive coordinator Ed Donatell. Vic Fangio elected to retain Simmons as the starting free safety to begin the season, along with Kareem Jackson at strong safety.
In Week 2, he collected a season-high nine combined tackles (eight solo) and deflected two passes during a 14–16 loss to the Chicago Bears. On October 13, 2019, Simmons made four solo tackles, a pass deflection, and had an interception off of Marcus Mariota to mark his second consecutive game with an interception as the Broncos defeated the Tennessee Titans 16–0. In Week 14, Simmons recorded six combined tackles (two solo) and a season-high three pass deflections in a 38–24 victory at the Houston Texans. He completed the season with a total of 93 combined tackles (65 solo), 15 pass deflections, and four interceptions while starting all 16 games. He was the highest-graded safety in the NFL in 2019 with an overall grade of 90.8 from Pro Football Focus. He played every single defensive snap for the second consecutive season and was elected as a second-team All-Pro.
2020 On March 13, 2020, the Denver Broncos placed the franchise tag on Simmons. On July 14, 2020, he signed the one-year tender worth $11.441 million on.
On September 20, 2020, Simmons led the team with eight combined tackles (seven solo) and had a season-high two pass deflections while also making his first interception of the season thrown by Ben Roethlisberger during the 26–21 loss at the Pittsburgh Steelers. In Week 10, he racked up a season-high nine combined tackles (five solo) as the Broncos lost 12-37 at the Las Vegas Raiders. The following week, with the Dolphins driving and trailing 20–13, Simmons intercepted a pass thrown by quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick in the end zone with 1:05 left, halting the Dolphins comeback attempt and sealing a Broncos victory. On December 21, 2020, Simmons was voted to the 2021 Pro Bowl. On January 3, 2021, Simmons produced three combined tackles (two solo), tied a season-high with two pass deflections, and set a career-high by recording his fifth interception of the season off a pass thrown by Derek Carr during the 32–31 loss against the Las Vegas Raiders. He started in every game for the third consecutive season in 2020 and finished with a total of 96 combined tackles (77 solo), nine pass deflections, and a career-high five interceptions. His performance in 2020 earned his a spot as the 45th best player voted among by his peers in the NFL Top 100 Players of 2021.
2021 On March 5, 2021, the Denver Broncos placed the franchise tag on Simmons for a second consecutive season, offering a one-year, $13.73 million contract. On March 19, 2021, the Denver Broncos and Simmons agreed upon a four-year, $61.00 million contract extension with the team that included $35.00 million guaranteed with $32.10 million guaranteed upon signing and an initial signing bonus of $15.00 million.
Defensive coordinator Ed Donatell retained Simmons and Kareem Jackson as the starting safeties to begin the season. On October 31, 2021, Simmons recorded seven solo tackles, two pass deflections, and set a career-high with two interceptions from passes thrown by Taylor Heinicke during a 17–10 win against the Washington Football Team. In Week 12, he collected a season-high eight combined tackles (seven solo) and deflected two passes in the Broncos' 28–13 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. He started all 17 regular season games and produced 80 combined tackles (60 solo), 12 pass deflections, five interceptions, and 1.5 sacks. His performance earned his a spot as the 81st best player in the NFL Top 100 Players of 2022.
2022