Two teams on completely opposite ends of the NFL food chain have pulled off a massive deal ahead of the trade deadline. The Tennessee Titans have traded All-Pro defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons to the Chicago Bears. In exchange for Simmons, the Titans are getting Chicago's 2027 and 2028 first-round picks and a 2027 fourth-round selection.
Chicago is also getting a 2028 fifth-round pick alongside Simmons. Chicago (5-2) now holds arguably the NFL's best interior defensive lineman. Still only 29, Simmons has been named to four Pro Bowls since 2021.
Last season, he earned All-Pro honors after setting career highs with 11 sacks and 17 tackles for loss. While the Bears are pushing all their chips to the middle of the table, Tennessee (1-6) is in full rebuild mode yet again. The trade of Simmons raises questions about some of the team's other notable players ahead of the deadline, especially running back Tony Pollard, who ran for three touchdowns during last Sunday's overtime loss to the Cleveland Browns.
Give Chicago a ton of credit for going all-in. The Bears clearly feel they have a team capable of winning it all. They wouldn't have made a trade of this magnitude if they didn't.
By getting Simmons, the Bears have increased their odds of winning what is arguably the NFL's hardest division, which includes the league's last unbeaten team, the 6-0 Minnesota Vikings. The Bears may have won the division without Simmons, but his addition makes them the front-runner. This also makes the Bears a stronger Super Bowl contender while keeping pace with the 49ers, who made a splash of their own earlier this week when they traded for DeForest Buckner.
Instead of standing on the sidelines, the Bears decided to respond. Speaking of San Francisco, this trade harkens back to the 49ers' acquisition of Fred Dean way back in 1981. Like Simmons, Dean was a star, a 29-year-old defensive lineman.
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