Bears Land Jeffery Simmons in Blockbuster Trade

When the Cleveland Browns shipped star defensive end Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams earlier this year, the dominoes began falling that ultimately led the Chicago Bears to land Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Bears GM Ryan Poles and Titans GM Mike Borgonzi modeled their own blockbuster deal on the Garrett trade, finalizing the Simmons swap with Chicago on Sunday.

In a significant trade, Los Angeles exchanged a first-round pick in 2027, a second-round pick in 2028, a third-round pick in 2029, and pass-rusher Jared Verse for Myles Garrett. The Titans valued Verse as a first-round talent, and this deal set the stage for another trade: Jeffery Simmons was sent to Chicago along with a 2028 fifth-round pick, in return for two first-round picks and a 2027 fourth-round pick, as explained by Adam Schefter.

The trade between the Bears and Titans was facilitated by the existing relationship between general managers Ryan Poles and Mike Borgonzi, who had previously worked together at the Kansas City Chiefs. This move highlighted the contrasting strategies of the two teams in 2026. The Bears, with franchise quarterback Caleb Williams, are focused on immediate success and aimed to strengthen their defense to compete with top NFC teams in the playoffs.

Adam Schefter reported that Poles and his team analyzed every Super Bowl winner since 2018, noting that each had an elite defensive tackle, including players like Aaron Donald, Chris Jones, Vita Vea, Fletcher Cox, Jalen Carter, and Leonard Williams. Meanwhile, the Titans, with a 1-6 record and two consecutive 3-14 seasons, are in rebuilding mode, prioritizing draft capital for future success.

Schefter noted that the Titans’ decision to trade Simmons was influenced by the draft capital gained in previous major trades. For instance, the Detroit Lions used picks acquired for Matthew Stafford to draft Jahmyr Gibbs, Sam LaPorta, and Jameson Williams. Similarly, the Browns obtained Mason Graham, Quinshon Judkins, Dylan Sampson, and KC Concepcion after trading the No. 2 pick in the 2025 draft to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The end result was the Titans landing multiple first-rounders they could eventually use to help build their next contending roster and the Bears landing one of the best defensive tackles in the league as they attempt to take the next step after reaching the Divisional Round last season. It will likely take multiple years to see the full impact of the trade, but there was reportedly plenty of research that went into the move on both sides. And some of that research included using the Garrett move from earlier this year to guide the way.