Compare Tennessee’s powerhouse tackle against former Pro Bowlers like Nick Bosa and DeForest Buckner to see if Simmons is the most dominant force Robert Saleh has mentored.
There were many reasons that Robert Saleh wanted to be the head coach of the Tennessee Titans.
Two big ones were obviously Cam Ward and Jeffery Simmons.
Ward is a very promising young quarterback with ridiculous arm talent and is already taking on the responsibility of leadership, as we saw in Netflix's "Quarterback."
Then, there's Simmons, who just had the best season of his Titans career but can be even better in Saleh's 4-3 system. Simmons has more help on the defensive line and a head coach who specializes in that side of the ball.
Simmons and Ward were the topic of discussion on a recent edition of "The Pat McAfee Show." NFL Analyst Peter Schrager was on and talked about how Simmons was even better than Saleh imagined.
This made me think about some of the defensive linemen Saleh has coached in the past and whether Simmons is the best. Let's take a look at some of the defensive linemen Saleh has worked with before.
Saleh's first NFL job was with the Houston Texans in 2005 as a defensive intern. The Texans didn't really have a dominant pass rusher until they drafted Mario Williams in 2006.
Williams was fairly consistent in sack production. He had 14 sacks in 2007 and 12 in 2008. Sacks were a big part of his game, but he could also get in the backfield and disrupt plays.
As a whole, Williams had 53 sacks and 64 TFLs with the Texans. Simmons has accounted for 42.5 sacks, but has Williams beat with 66 TFLs.
Saleh left the Texans just before J.J. Watt got there, so he didn't get to work with him, obviously. He joined the Seattle Seahawks in 2011 as a defensive quality control coach just in time for their "Legion of Boom" era.
The best pass rusher the Seahawks had when they won the Super Bowl in 2013 was Michael Bennett. He had 8.5 sacks and nine TFLs that season.
The Seahawks also had Chris Clemons during that run. He had double-digit sacks from 2011-12, but his numbers fell off in 2013. Clemons had a good run, but wasn't consistent enough to challenge Simmons' numbers.
He then joined the Jacksonville Jaguars as the linebackers coach from 2014-16. They had Sen'Derrick Marks and Clemons, but neither of them were able to record more than 10 sacks.
Saleh also got to work with Yannik Ngakoue, who had some great years in Jacksonville. However, he's had one more 10-sack season since leaving the Jaguars in 2020.
Saleh had his first stint with the San Francisco 49ers as their defensive coordinator in 2017. It wasn't long before Saleh turned DeForest Buckner into a Pro Bowler.
Buckner had 12 sacks, 67 total tackles and 17 TFLs in 2018. In 2019, Saleh had a breakout year from Arik Armstead, and the team also drafted Nick Bosa out of Ohio State.
Armstead's only double-digit sack season of his career was with Saleh in 2019.
Bosa obviously turned into a ferocious pass rusher even though Saleh only worked with him for two years. Bosa's best season was in 2022, when he had 18.5 sacks, 51 total tackles and 19 TFLs.
When Saleh became the head coach of the New York Jets, he got to work with Quinnen Williams right away. Williams put together a 12-sack season that year and made the Pro Bowl.
Williams had a great year in 2022 but has struggled to maintain his production lately. Saleh also worked with John Franklin-Myers, who is now on the Titans.
Franklin-Myers is a versatile defensive lineman, and it'll be interesting to see how the Titans use him. He should benefit from all the attention that Simmons will receive this year.
In his final year with the Jets, Saleh had Will McDonald put up 10.5 sacks in 2024. He has remained consistent, but he hasn't been in the league long enough to say that he's better than Simmons.
Last season was a struggle for the 49ers on defense. That couldn't maintain a consistent pass rush. The most sacks on the defensive line were from Bryce Huff, who had four.
After looking at all the defensive linemen that Saleh has worked with at his previous stops, there's no denying that he's had some studs. Simmons may not be the best defensive lineman Saleh has worked with, but a case can be made that he's the best defensive tackle.
It has been rare for Saleh to have coached a versatile player like Simmons. You can see why Saleh has been so excited to coach Simmons at the Titans.
