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Jeffery Simmons wants to figure out 'who wants to play football for the Titans'

rhiannon walker
Contributing writer
·2 min read
19

Jeffery Simmons has had it with his teammates, and now he's calling them out.

After the Tennessee Titans loss to the Baltimore Ravens in London on Sunday, the Titans' defensive tackle told reporters the team needs to assess who wants to play for it.

"We need to figure out the guys who are going to fight," Simmons said after the 24-16 loss. "We need to figure out the guys who want to be out there. Not the guys that don't want to be out there. That's what it needs to be. We need to re-evaluate our team and figure that out. That's the message: Let's figure out who wants to play football for the Titans."

Simmons recorded only two tackles in the game and not only took his frustration out on his teammates, but also on Baltimore. As Zay Flowers was being tackled by two Titans, Simmons dove at the receiver's legs. This resulted in Odell Beckham Jr. coming over and kneeing Simmons, who pushed the Ravens receiver to the turf. Beckham and Baltimore received the 15-yard, unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

The Titans lost Ryan Tannehill to an ankle injury in the third quarter, and Malik Willis played the entire final frame. Tennessee was able to score only three points in the fourth quarter, and the offensive line allowed six sacks, including four of Willis on the final drive.

Tennessee limps into its bye week at 2-4, and even head coach Mike Vrabel seemed at a loss for how the team can correct its issues. He acknowledged that some of the Titans' problems are "maybe" and "probably" not fixable.

Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons (98) walks across the field before an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday, Oct. 15, 2023, at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium in London. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
After the Tennessee Titans fell to 2-4, Jeffery Simmons questioned if there are teammates who don't want to play. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

“We’ll see,” Vrabel said. “I’m not going to stop trying. Not going to stop trying to prepare them and teach them the fundamentals and execution. There will be some good plays in there and certainly ones we have to eliminate that are getting us beat.

"I would consider anything that would help us win right now, and that's quarterback — everything. But ... let's figure out what's going on with Ryan."