The Tennessee Titans have a lot of new faces in town for their 2022 training camp. One player who will be returning after a breakout 2021 campaign, despite rumors of a potential holdout, is star defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons. Simmons figures to be one of Tennessee's leaders on defense after they had a down year defensively in 2021.
The problem the Titans face with Simmons is that he wants a new contract. Tennessee exercised Simmons fifth-year option that will see him earn over $10 million in 2023, but Simmons base salary in 2022 is just a little over $2 million.
Simmons clearly believes he is deserving of a big money deal, and who could blame him? He's coming off a dominant 2021 season in which he racked up 8.5 sacks, in addition to being a superb run stuffer at the middle of Tennessee's defensive line. Those stats helped Simmons earn a spot on the All-Pro second team in just his third season in the league.
Despite Simmons' disputes with his contract, he is refusing to discuss the matter after he decided to report to training camp and practice rather than holding out. Simmons was asked multiple questions about his contract status after the Titans first practice, but he refused to speak about his contract, saying he is solely focused on football right now.
While Simmons' contract issues figure to pop up some point down the line if they don't get addressed, it's a great sign to see that he won't let it impact his performance on the field.
This doesn't change the fact that Tennessee needs to focus on extending Simmons in the future, or else they could risk ostracizing one of their best defensive players. But for now, the Titans will be happy that Jeffery Simmons has decided against holding out and is in town for training camp.
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