Robert Saleh’s aggressive 4-3 scheme promises to unleash Tennessee’s All-Pro defensive tackle. By prioritizing interior penetration, Simmons could shatter career highs while creating dominant opportunities for the entire defensive front.
The Tennessee Titans had a career year from their star player Jeffery Simmons.
He made his fourth Pro Bowl and was a First-Team All-Pro for the first time in his successful NFL career. Simmons finished with 11 sacks, 67 total tackles, and 17 TFLs, proving once again that he can affect the running game and opposing quarterbacks as an interior defensive lineman.
Those stats were posted under two different head coaches last season. Brian Callahan was fired after Week 6, and Mike McCoy became the interim head coach. Regardless, Simmons had one of the best seasons of his career.
The Titans' star will now be coached by a defensive-minded HC, Robert Saleh. His defensive coordinator, Gus Bradley, is a former HC after spending many years with the Jacksonville Jaguars (2013-16).
It may be hard to imagine Simmons having a better year than he did in 2025, but former NFL scout Brentley Weissman predicted that he would be on "another level" with Saleh.
Weissman joined a recent episode of "The Mina Kimes Show" and explained how Saleh's 4-3 system, which asks interior defensive linemen to get upfield, is perfect for a player like Simmons.
Simmons' success could trickle down to John Franklin-Myers and Jermaine Johnson, allowing them to get more 1-on-1 matchups in the trenches.
"Playing in this Robert Saleh 4-3 scheme that asked the 3-tech to get upfield and penetrate more than what his 3-4 hybrid scheme last year did," Weissman. "I think Simmons could be just another level this year. I think he can go for a 13 or 14 type of sack season and really allow the players I mentioned, John Franklin-Myers, Jermaine Johnson, to eat 1-on-1s. I think this front four is drastically improved."
Saleh has worked with players like Simmons before at his previous stops.
Saleh has had two stints as San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator, from 2017-20 and last season. During that time, he worked with players like DeForest Buckner and Arik Armstead, both of whom thrived in his system.
Buckner's best season was in 2018, with 12 sacks. Armstead had the best year of his career in terms of sacks in 2019, finishing with 10.
Simmons is a better player than both of those guys, so the sky is really the limit for the Titans' star.
Saleh's system could benefit not only Simmons but also the players around him. It's not ridiculous to think Franklin-Myers and Johnson could reap the rewards of the extra attention Simmons is going to get.
If you thought what Simmons did last year was special, look out in 2026.
