The Titans and defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons have worked out a new deal that raises the bar, considerably, for the market at his position.
The initial reports pegged the new contract as a three-year, $105.8 million extension. That creates a new-money average of $35.2 million.
But there’s more to the deal than that, as usual. And, as usual, we’ve tracked down the complete details of what is a new five-year contract between the Titans and Simmons, who capped the 2025 season with the first All-Pro distinction of his seven-year career.
Here’s the full contract, per a source with knowledge of the terms:
1. Signing bonus: $20 million.
2. 2026 base salary: $13 million, fully guaranteed.
3. 2027 option bonus: $5.5 million.
4. 2027 workout bonus: $250,000, fully guaranteed (but must be earned).
5. 2027 base salary: $21.45 million, fully guaranteed.
6. 2028 90-man offseason roster bonus: $2.5 million, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in March 2027.
7. 2028 workout bonus: $250,000, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in March 2027 (but must be earned).
8. 2028 base salary: $27.05 million, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in March 2027.
9. 2029 90-man offseason roster bonus: $5.5 million, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in March 2028.
10. 2029 workout bonus: $250,000.
11. 2029 base salary: $22.251 million, $4.5 million of which is guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in March 2028.
12. 2030 90-man offseason roster bonus: $1 million.
13. 2030 workout bonus: $250,000.
14. 2030 base salary: $30.75 million.
The contract carries $60.2 million fully guaranteed at signing. The practical guarantee is $90 million, since the third year becomes guaranteed after the first season.
Simmons becomes the first defensive tackle to have $100 million in total guarantees at signing.
The new-money average is $35.276 million. Factoring in the compensation previously owed through 2027, it’s a five-year deal with an average from signing of $30 million.
One last note. At a time when more and more teams are insisting on per-game active roster bonuses (and when teams like the Titans are routinely using them for significant veteran contracts), the Simmons deal contains none.
In all, it’s a firm three-year, $90 million commitment, with another $10 million that will be guaranteed into the fourth season.
Titans Clips
Jalen Carter should be smiling.
Every major NFL contract has ripple effects with other players. Friday’s new deal for Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons pushed the top of the market at the position from $31.75 million per year to $35.2 million.
That becomes directly relevant to Carter’s unsettled contract situation in Philadelphia.
Carter has become one of the most dominant defensive players in the NFL, after only three seasons. By making it to multiple Pro Bowls, his fifth-year option for 2027 has spiked to $27.127 million. His franchise tag, as of 2028, will be at least $32.554 million.
In March, a report surfaced that the Eagles had gotten calls about a trade for Carter. Which seemed to come from a leak calculated to invite more calls — and possibly encouraging backchannel conversations that would allow Carter to conclude that whatever the Eagles may have been offering is in line with what he could get elsewhere.
Since then, Carter was an apparent hold-in during mandatory minicamp. Although coach Nick Sirianni declined to say why Carter wasn’t participating in team drills, Sirianni didn’t need to.
Carter wisely isn’t doing anything that may put himself at risk until he gets paid. Especially since he’s due to be paid only $3.723 million in 2026.
The Eagles usually do a good job of getting guys signed early, because delay always pushes the bar higher. In Carter’s case, the Simmons contract does precisely that.
Now, the target for the new-money APY on a new deal won’t be a click above $31.75 million. Carter will reasonably believe that he should come in ahead of $35.2 million.
So what would it take to get to $35.3 million? With $30.85 million due over the next two years, a five-year, $136.75 million deal would get there.
That’s the minimum, at this point. And Carter likely won’t be doing anything during training camp until he gets there.
One of the best defensive linemen in the NFL has gotten a new deal.
The Titans have announced that defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons has agreed to a “multi-year extension.” Via NFL Network, it’s a three-year, $105.8 million addition to his existing contract.
“Tennessee has become a second home for me,” Simmons said, via the team’s website. “From day one, this organization believed in me, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to continue to pour into this franchise and community. I want to thank God, my family, my teammates, Ms. Amy [Adams Strunk] and the entire Titans organization for believing in me. My job isn’t finished. I believe in this locker room and this staff, and I’m focused on helping this team get back to competing for championships.”
A first-round pick in 2019 from Mississippi State, Simmons has become the cornerstone of the Tennessee franchise. He’s a four-time Pro Bowler, a second-team All-Pro in 2021 and 2022, and a first-team All-Pro in 2025.
The average annual value of the extension is $35.2 million. That makes him the highest-paid interior defensive lineman, based on new-money average. Chris Jones had the prior top spot at $31.75 million.
Simmons had been signed through 2027. The new deal puts him under contract through 2030.
He was due to make $44.17 million over the next two years. The three new years push the total contract to five years and $149.97 million.
Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky signed a two-year deal with the Titans this offseason, reuniting with his former offensive coordinator Brian Daboll.
While Trubisky was the No. 2 overall pick of the 2017 draft, at this point in his career, he’s better suited as a backup. That’s a role he’s embracing, particularly given his familiarity with the scheme and the presence of young quarterback Cam Ward.
“At this point of my career, I feel like I have a lot to offer as a mentor,” Trubisky said recently, via Jim Wyatt of the team’s website. “And Cam being young, we’ve have a great relationship so far, and I am looking forward to helping him in any way I can, and take the next step, but also these young guys. Not only Cam, but everyone on this team. It is a fairly young team overall. I am getting up there with my experience, but I feel like I have a lot to offer.
“I love being a great teammate, and I love working hard. It was a great opportunity to come here, and I look forward to playing with coach [Robert] Saleh and coach ‘Dabes.’”
Trubisky, who has started 57 games in his career, said that at this point he knows his job is to come out and work.
“I know it is a mentor-type role, me being in Year 10 and Cam being in Year 2,” Trubisky said. “My job here is to help Cam as much as possible to be the best player he can possibly be.
“I am happy to be here to support him, and I am definitely willing to help, to be the best teammate I could possibly be and help this franchise win in any way possible. I love the game of football. I love the team camaraderie aspect, pushing each other, and I love competing every day and trying to be the best I can possibly be at my craft.”
While that M word “mentorship” can be a dirty one for many veteran quarterbacks, it’s notable that Trubisky has not only accepted it, but is also embracing it.
Trubisky may be the backup, but given his familiarity with the coaching staff and the league at large, he should be an asset for Ward’s development in his second season.
Titans quarterback Cam Ward hasn’t always been his sharpest at OTA practices while learning the team’s new offense this spring, but missed passes aren’t a concern for the guys calling the shots on the coaching staff.
Offensive coordinator Brian Daboll said that Titans players are “still learning” the offense and that “you have to make the mistakes” in order to fix what’s wrong with the unit’s operation. He said the team is happy with where Ward is at this point in the process and head coach Robert Saleh echoed that lack of concern.
“Every quarterback is going to miss a couple here and there,” Saleh said, via Turron Davenport of ESPN.com. “I would say Brock Purdy’s one of the most accurate quarterbacks in all of football, and he would miss a lot of throws, and that’s OK. These guys are all working on a few things here and there.”
The Titans will have chances to continue ironing out the mistakes at minicamp this week and during training camp. If that goes well, the offense should be in position for a quick start to the regular season.
The Titans announced a handful of roster moves as they kicked off this week’s mandatory minicamp.
They have signed defensive lineman Jalyn Holmes and center Andre James. They waived defensive lineman C.J. Ravenell with an injury designation and released center Trey Hill in corresponding moves.
Holmes appeared in 21 games for the Commanders over the last two seasons. He had 35 tackles and two sacks in those contests. He’s also played for the Jets, Bears, Saints and Vikings since entering the league as a 2018 fourth-round pick in Minnesota.
James spent the last six seasons with the Raiders. He played in 89 games and made 60 starts.
The Titans are taking a look at a veteran defensive player.
Per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, safety Ifeatu Melifonwu worked out for Tennessee on Tuesday.
Melifonwu, 27, previously worked out for the Seahawks earlier this month.
Melifonwu spent last season with the Dolphins after playing out his rookie contract with the Lions. He appeared in1 6 games with eight starts for Miami, recording 53 total tackles, an interception, and a sack.
A third-round pick in 2021, Melifonwu has appeared in a total of 53 games with 22 starts. He’s recorded 5.5 career sacks along with 14 passes defensed, and three interceptions.
It’s been more than two months since the story of the offseason landed out of the blue, courtesy of photos from the New York Post and (more importantly) clear and strong denials from the people involved.
Although the drip-drip of worthwhile developments has ended (that hasn’t stopped some from using anything/everything they can to harvest clicks and video views), there’s one unresolved issue that apparently will remain that way, into the summer.
Via Oli Coleman of the New York Post, The Athletic executive editor Steven Ginsberg recently provided an internal update regarding its investigation into the reporting of Dianna Russini, given the evidence that emerged of her relationship with Patriots coach Mike Vrabel.
“It’s going to take a few more weeks,” Ginsberg reportedly said. “There’s just a lot to go through, and we obviously want to take our time and be careful doing that. We will update everybody when we get to the end of that. We’ve also said that if we find anything that needs to be corrected, we will correct it along the way.”
In her April 14 resignation letter, Russini repeated her strong denial of wrongdoing that blamed the media for engaging in “self-feeding speculation that is simply unmoored from the facts.” The Athletic continued its investigation after her departure.
It’s unclear why it has taken so long for The Athletic, which is owned by the New York Times, to finish its investigation. As Coleman notes, the delay is creating internal concerns.
For now, it appears that The Athletic intends to continue its investigation, to conclude it, and to share its outcome. Even if The Athletic doesn’t publish any final report, chances are that someone within the broader Times apparatus will get it, and leak it.
Even without publication of the report (or a leak of it), The Athletic may go back and “correct” past reporting.
It’s a delicate balance for The Athletic and the Times. Photos of Vrabel and Russini from March 2020, which emerged after her resignation, raise questions about the quality of the vetting process and/or the oversight of Russini. Basically, what did management know, what should it have known, when did it know it, and when should have been known? A full and transparent investigation could make the publications, which already look bad as to their initial statement on the matter, come off even worse.
Brushing it all under the rug won’t be acceptable, either. The issue highlights pre-existing tensions between the Times and The Athletic. Will the employees of The Athletic be held to the same standard as employees of the Times?
Hovering over everything The Athletic says or does is the possibility of litigation, if Russini continues to adhere to her denials and is willing to back them up by filing a defamation case against anyone who says otherwise.
Titans wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson wore No. 17 in his four seasons with the Giants. When he signed with the Titans, Robinson could have tried to buy the No. 17 from Chimere Dike, who earned All-Pro honors as a returner last season as a rookie, or pick another number.
He chose another number in honor of a friend.
“I didn’t want [No. 17],” Robinson told Kay Adams of FanDuel TV. “I was going in wanting a single digit, and then also my late friend, Rondale Moore, he wore No. 4. So that was kind of the reasoning behind me getting that number. Just kind of to honor him, and the time that he was here. That’s where I was going in. I wanted No. 4. I don’t know about Carnell [Tate] and exactly what went on with him and Chim. But, yeah, I was good with leaving 17 in the past.”
Tate wore No. 17 at Ohio State. The first-round wide receiver will wear No. 14 with the Titans.
Moore died in February from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Robinson and Moore trained together in the Louisville area the final two years of Robinson’s high school career and became fast friends.
There may be a reunion in Kansas City.
Veteran cornerback L’Jarius Sneed is visiting with the Chiefs on Thursday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.
Sneed, 29, played his first four seasons with the Chiefs before they traded him to Tennessee in the 2024 offseason. Sneed was instrumental in helping Kansas City win back-to-back Super Bowls in 2022 and 2023.
But his two seasons with Tennessee were marred by injury, as Sneed played just 12 games over the last two years. He was on the field for seven contests in 2025, recording 26 total tackles with three passes defensed.
The Chiefs have to replace two starting corners for 2026, as Trent McDuffie was traded to the Rams and Jaylen Watson followed him to Los Angeles in free agency.
In his 69 career games with 66 starts, Sneed has tallied 10 picks with 43 passes defensed, four forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, and 6.5 sacks.
