After being away from the team for four games, Kansas City Chiefs’ left tackle Josh Simmons returned to the field on Sunday to start against the Denver Broncos. He played every snap in the 22-19 defeat
— and seemed to perform as well as he had before missing four games for undisclosed personal reasons beginning in Week 6.
On Wednesday, Simmons stepped up to the podium to answer questions from the Kansas City media for the first time since rejoining the team — beginning with a personal statement.
“I definitely want to thank Kansas City and this club for having my ‘six’ for the time I was away from the team,” he Simmons. “It shows how much love this city and this team have for me, and I can’t wait to give it back to them.”
Simmons declined to share details about why he was away from the organization. He did, however, say he was “ready to play” against the Broncos; he had prepared himself to hit the ground running upon his return.
“I had access to gyms,” Simmons pointed out. “I was making sure I was working out, then hitting some field work, just keeping my feet alive and making sure my nervous system was woken up.”
Simmons was just as proactive in his mental preparation as he was in the physical factors.
“I had access to my playbook,” Simmons said. “So I was able to keep up and stay proactive with studying plays and stuff like that, making sure I was going over notes.”
The rookie left tackle also said that during his absence, his communication with the Chiefs was “very transparent, especially at the end.”
In his first game back, Simmons faced the Broncos’ defense that leads the NFL in sacks (49) at a historic pace. While Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes was sacked three times, Pro Football Focus blamed none of them on Simmons. He was flagged for a holding penalty and one false start — and acknowledged there is room for him to improve.
“As a front, we swung as hard as we could,” he remarked. “There were obviously some things [we couldn’t] control; that was also a really good football team. It’s just picking up on the film and cleaning some stuff up.”
Simmons acknowledged “a little bit” of rust in the first game he has played in over a month, but credited Denver’s talented pass rush for the immediate challenge.
“[Nik Bonitto] is an extremely gifted player,” Simmons noted. “So going against that was a fair welcome back. I think with the teammates that I had throughout that week, they helped me up and helped kind of brush that stuff off.”
Now, Simmons’ focus must be on the defense of the (8-2) Indianapolis Colts. The unit is not as star-studded as the Broncos’, but Simmons sees a tough test awaiting him and his offensive teammates on Sunday.
“They are very disciplined,” he observed. “I’m looking at their ends right now… They play very hard… They are very, very strong and very physical; they are going to get after it.
“They aren’t necessarily going to [play like] Myles Garrett, but they are extremely gifted, so that’s something I’m going to be studying my tail off to be going against.”
It sounds like Simmons is back to a normal football routine — and he’s back to stay.
“I will be here for the rest of the season with the Kansas City Chiefs,” he declared.
And for now, his goals are simple.
“Just win,” he said. “Just keep winning.”
