How excitement for Jeffery Simmons' arrival permeated Halas Hall and the Chicago Bears

Jeffery Simmons has not played in a primetime game since 2023.

The newest Chicago Bears defensive tackle stood at the Halas Hall podium and spoke about joining a 5-2 team at Halas Hall on Friday with their next opponent being the defending Super Bowl Champion Seahawks.

He was excited. Simmons loved Tennessee, but he now gets a chance to join in a race for a Super Bowl. It means more primetime games, plus the chance to compete for more.

That excitement was all over the place at Halas Hall on Friday as it was clear the Bears inched closer to their Super Bowl aspirations with the acquisition of Simmons.

"This is a great locker room from the quarterback all the way down," Simmons said. "I’m excited to help this team compete for a championship."

What they're saying:

The Bears paid a price to acquire Simmons. Two first-round picks went back to Tennessee in a move that shocked the NFL.

"The trade told me everything I needed to know," Simmons said. "Giving away two first round picks, this team believes in what they have here and they want it right now."

It’s easy to see why.

Simmons led all NFL interior defensive linemen last season with a career-high 11.0 sacks and 17 tackles for loss.

He also recorded 72 career tackles for loss since entering the league in 2019. That’s tied for the third-most by any interior defensive lineman in the NFL. He also has the fifth-most sacks by any interior defensive lineman in the league with 46.5.

You don’t need to explain that to anyone else around Halas Hall, especially the guy calling plays with Simmons in them.

"It's like waking up on Christmas morning and you go out and you see all the presents under the tree," Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said. "Then your mind starts to go to my mind starts to go to, 'Okay, how can we utilize this guy?' What are the things that we can do to really utilize his strengths? And so like I said, that'll continue to be a work in progress as we move forward."

Allen doesn’t just get a good player. Poles traded for arguably the best defensive tackle in the league.

In his entire career, Allen wasn’t sure if he’s had a player like Simmons under his tutelage.

"I don't know that I've had anybody that's been what I would consider this dominant," Allen said. "I've had some good players that have played inside for us. David Onyemata comes to mind, but I don't know that I've had anybody this disruptive."

Disruption is something that can help the Bears entire defense, especially a secondary that’s seen ups and downs this season.

"I think he's a multiplier," Bears general manager Ryan Poles said. "I think when you can provide pressure, you help your secondary tremendously."

The excitement doesn’t stop at Halas Hall, either.

Bears offensive coordinator Press Taylor said he got a facetime call from his brother, Bengals head coach Zac Taylor.

Taylor was excited, too. The Bengals play the Titans this weekend, and now they can take Simmons off their gameplan.

"We don't normally talk until later in the week," Taylor said. "I'm like, ‘Thank you. We're excited.’ He's like, ‘No, we play the Titans this week.’ Makes a lot more sense why you're excited. He's like, ‘Yeah, I'm going to go put in a couple more passes. Maybe. we'll see.’ It's just a little juice for us."

What's next:

The Bears didn’t say if Simmons would play on Monday night, but Poles said he assumed he would. That’s more up to the coaching staff.

Whatever they want from Simmons, he’s willing to do.

"I’m ready to roll. I’m ready to help this team win football games," Simmons said. "Whatever role they ask me to play Monday night, and the rest of the season, I’m willing to do that."

Simmons will be a key figure into what the Bears accomplish this season.

He was a one-man wrecking crew in Tennessee, but doesn’t need to be that in Chicago. He has a list of veterans and teammates he’s going to elevate just as much as they can elevate his game.

The potential puts the Bears in the conversation to make the playoffs and go far. That’s why Allen can barely contain his excitement. 

"I'll take Jeffery Simmons," Allen said when asked what the best gift he ever received was. "We'll say that's the best one."

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