Titans Star Motivated to Bounce Back

Tennessee Titans defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons is looking to get back on track.

Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons (98) hits the field for warmups before the Chicago Bears game at Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill., Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. / Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK

No defense in the NFL performed better than the Tennessee Titans in Week 1, and that is a motivator for star defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons.

Simmons, 27, is in his sixth season with the Titans, making him one of the longest-tenured players on the roster. It's also his first season playing under a new head coach in Brian Callahan and defensive coordinator in Dennard Wilson.

With the new faces in the building and the strong start, Simmons hopes to keeps the early momentum going.

"It's frustrating to lose, but I'm motivated," Simmons said about the team's Week 1 loss to ESPN insider Turron Davenport. "I'm not worried about the offense. They'll clean stuff up and same with special teams. But as a defense, we have to keep our foot on the gas. We didn't [create] one turnover. When teams start getting momentum, we have to find ways to get the offense the ball."

Turnovers have been an emphasis for the Titans in practice this week, and the team hopes to be able to force Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets into a mistake or two for their Week 2 matchup.

The Titans know that they can be a really good defense, but in order to cross that threshold into becoming a great unit, they will need to turn the ball over. That starts with Simmons and the defensive line applying pressure on the opposing quarterback.

As one of the veteran leaders of the team, Simmons prides himself into being the disruptor towards creating those turnovers if he can help it. The hope is that Simmons' teammates will follow his lead and it could allow the defense to cover up some of the offensive shortcomings as they look to get their issues cleared out.

If the Titans can build a winning foundation with their defense, it will take a lot of pressure off the rest of the team towards grabbing victories.

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