Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - LEGACY: Denver Broncos Justin Simmons RETIRES After Career Worthy of the Ring of Fame

Starting point is 00:00:00 Former Denver Broncos all-pro safety, Justin Simmons retired with the team. And I'll tell you this, he deserves to go into the ring of fame at some point. You are locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked-on podcast network, your team every day. What's up, Broncos Country? I'm Cody York. Join as always by Sarah Bedinger. And on today's bonus episode of the show, we're going to highlight and remember one of the best Broncos

Starting point is 00:00:32 safeties in franchise history, Justin Simmons officially. hanging the cleats up, retiring as a member of the Debra Broncos. And we'll talk about his impact not only just on the field, but off the field. And then we're going to debate whether or not he should go into the Broncos ring of fame. We can't wait to break it down with you. Sarah, obviously, this kind of came out of nowhere the other day here for Denver. I was sitting, you know, my wife was, unfortunately, she was getting ready for a procedure. And I get a notification.

Starting point is 00:00:57 Justin Simmons retires. And then the press release comes out saying, hey, there's a press conference. I missed it. But, man, on the way driving my wife back. listening to Justin's presser, you could tell how much Denver meant to him as a whole. And obviously, I think we all knew this day was going to come at some point. We thought he was going to be a lifelong Bronco. What were your initial thoughts after Justin announced his retirement?

Starting point is 00:01:18 Well, one of the first thoughts for me is, man, time really flies because it was 10 years to the date that he was drafted by the team. I believe that he announced his retirement. And, man, Justin Cody, I was listening to the press conference. He does a pretty dang good John Elway impersonation. I'd like to hear a little bit more of that as well. For those who didn't hear it, you've got to go back and listen because it's funny. He described it in another quote that he had about, you know,

Starting point is 00:01:44 hearing the raspy voice on the other side. And then he mimicked John during the press conference. It was great. It was really good. So, yeah, Justin, he's a man of many talents. But, man, my first thought, and I hate to say it this way is like, dude, that sucks. Because I wish players like Justin Simmons could have the ultimate, career send off.

Starting point is 00:02:06 Like Peyton Manning walking off into the sunset, I just feel like Justin Simmons is one of those types of guys. As a leader of this team, the light that he was in the darkness that was, the Denver Broncos for so many years, I just felt terrible that he didn't get to experience playing in the postseason ever. I thought for sure he'd get to do it when he went to Atlanta because they had kind of the makings of,

Starting point is 00:02:29 at least in a terrible division, no less, just felt like the stars were aligning for him to, at least get a ticket to the dance one time. He'll go down, unfortunately, as one of the best players. And this is a short list that I can think of off the top of my head, but one of the best players to never play in the playoffs. And that was my first sad thought about it. It's like, dang, he's never going to get to play in the postseason.

Starting point is 00:02:53 That's terrible for somebody like him. Yeah, just that and you mentioned you called him kind of the light and the darkness. There were a lot of dark years in Broncos country. Justin was there. And I loved how he kind of reflected, you know, like after every year, game, even the toughest game. It was always Justin that was willing to talk with us in the media that was going to give us a real quote versus, you know, just lip service that we used to get just from other players during the dark times. Like Justin was kind of like, hey, I'm going to stand in front of everybody and I'm going to, I'm going to be the guy that tries to keep hope alive.

Starting point is 00:03:22 That's who Justin was. But here's the thing. He wasn't just a rah-rah guy, though, Sarah. Like he was arguably for a while until Pat Sertan arrived. He was the best player on the roster. And it wasn't even close. You talk about a guy who was a ball hawk. Anytime you needed a big play, Justin Simmons was going to go and make that play for you,

Starting point is 00:03:38 whether it was intercepting a pass, somehow recovering a fumble, forcing one, like he would come up big and some of the bigger moments that you certainly needed. And unfortunately, his time with Denver ended after Sean Payton's first season with the team. I know when that happened, you and I had a pretty emotionally reaction, you know, based episode there. And look, I'll tell you this, I will always be the number one Justin Simmons fan in the world. Just Justin Simmons, the player, Justin Simmons, the human because of my experience with him. and said before I was ever in the media world, like I didn't have a footprint.

Starting point is 00:04:07 I was doing locked on, right? But I didn't have a footprint in the media world. 2018, my brother suddenly passed away. And I mean, Justin, out of nowhere, I get a text saying, hey, this is Justin Simmons, just want to let you know. Me and my family, we're praying for you. If there's anything you need just less. And I was like, Justin doesn't even know me.

Starting point is 00:04:24 And Justin, a Broncos player, reaching out to me and doing that like that meant so much to me. And then obviously, as I started getting the media world, moved to Denver, I got the chance to see Justin every day and he was always great for me. So for me, I'll always be selfishly a Justin Simmons fan for that. But that goes to show the type of human that he was. And I don't know if he saw it.

Starting point is 00:04:44 In honor of his retirement, Adam Schaefter posted that video where, I think it was before season opener, there was another man in the world his name was Justin Simmons who passed away. And Justin kind of found out about that. Justin flew that guy's whole entire family to Denver for the season opener of the game that Denver had.

Starting point is 00:05:01 And just once again, that's just the type of human that Justin was. Yeah, very intentional. I think with everything that he does, Cody. And obviously he talked about it during his press conference, how the proudest accomplishment that he had is being nominated for the Walter Peyton Man of the Year award multiple times over. And this is a guy who made all pro teams. So that's a big deal to him to have made an impact off the field.

Starting point is 00:05:24 And he was talking about, you know, what a waste it would be if he had this platform and didn't use it to do good or to pass something on it to the, the next generation or to be an impact to somebody else. And he just embodied that for his entire time in Denver. It's so cool to see. And I love that, you know, he was able to get the, I know he said that they were giving him kind of a, you know, a reception or an event that he didn't necessarily feel like he deserved.

Starting point is 00:05:48 But I think it was well deserved, Cody. And one of the safeties in Broncos history, I felt watching this press conference, I felt bad for Justin that that's maybe his takeaway from it. I know it's very fresh. Like he's just, he's just announcing his retirement after 10 years in the NFL, but I felt bad that, you know,

Starting point is 00:06:08 his perception was that, you know, he failed in a way. And I think that he was just kind of being honest in talking about it in that manner of feeling like he had so much pressure on his shoulders to go out there and perform at such a high level that he's like, I can only do so much as a safety, but I felt like,

Starting point is 00:06:25 I felt that burden of pressure on me to really, hey, carry this team as the leader. Yeah. And that wasn't his fault that he was the best player on the team for four plus years or whatever it was before Pat and got to Denver. And it wasn't his fault that the Broncos couldn't figure out the quarterback position. It wasn't his fault. They changed head coach and schemes and all these different things so many different times over. Ultimately, it wasn't his fault that he ended up getting selected to Denver during one of the worst stretches of the franchise's history.

Starting point is 00:06:54 And I think that that does overshadow, like you mentioned, it's hard to get personal accolades when, your team stinks and that was not his fault either so i just he'll always be known to me cody as patrick mahomes kryptonite and i i love what he brought for the table for this broncos team just like you he's he's got a lifetime fan in me and not just because he mentioned well him and his family are a disney family because man i i really like to speak in my language there he's my people but i what i think about Justin Simmons is I've I've been to one game since the Peyton Manning era, Cody. I went to the Broncos and Packers game in 2020. You know, that's where I got to meet you for the first time.

Starting point is 00:07:37 Yes, sir. Where I got to meet Justin Simmons for the first time because after the game, there's a line of, you know, a couple hundred fans standing outside where the players come out of the tunnel into the parking lot where they go get in their cars and they leave. Justin and Pat for tan for that matter. But Justin stopped for every single. person. He was there for over an hour and signing autographs, taking pictures. If people wanted to retake a picture, he would do it. If they wanted to sign multiple things, he would do it. That was after

Starting point is 00:08:07 like a week eight game or something like that, right? I mean, this is just like, that's the type of guy that he was. So anybody that may wonder like, well, is he just, you know, using his platform to do good and that's just kind of a PR stunt? Absolutely not. This is a guy who sticks around for hours after a game to be among the people who have, you know, I guess elevated him to the point that he's at as the fans of the team. Yeah. Just, I mean, you said it best. I would say there's one thing I wish we could change about Justin Simmons.

Starting point is 00:08:37 The fact I wish he could play in one more game so he could fix his total tackles that he's got combined. Sarah, it's six, six, six. That's how many total tackles that he has. So I wish we could just get one more tackle for him to be able to come out there and fix that here. Obviously, you know, just so much love for Justin as a human, as a player, so much respect. He helped me navigate this crazy media world that we have inside a locker room.

Starting point is 00:09:03 You know, especially me being a young guy initially, he kind of helped make that process easier. But Broncos country, we want to know from you. Good Justin Simmons going to the Broncos Ring of Fame. We're going to tell you why he belongs in that. Today's episode of the show was brought to you by our friends over there at Indeed. If you've got workplace chaos that's going on, you've got deadlines there stacking up. Plus your email inbox. It's overflowing.

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Starting point is 00:10:02 Plus, listeners of this show, you'll get a $75 sponsored job credit to get your job the premium status it deserves at Indeed.com slash podcast. Just go to Indy.com slash podcast right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indy.com slash podcast. Terms and conditions apply need to hire. This is a job for Indeed, sponsored jobs. He may not have been able to break Steve Foley's interception record, but Justin Simmons absolutely deserves a spot in the Denver Broncos ring of fame. We're going to tell you why on today's bonus episode, Lockdown Broncos. Broncos Country, we appreciate you so much for tuning in, rocking with us. All you every dayers out there.

Starting point is 00:10:39 Shout out to every single one of you. And if you haven't done so already, Cody and I would really appreciate if you consider checking out the Everydayer All Access Club. There's actually a couple of tiers of the Everydayer Club that you can check out. But in the All Access Club, you're going to get all 22 breakdowns. of this stellar Broncos draft class, ad-free episode of the show, plenty more, and especially plenty to come as we get into the season. So, Cody, I'm excited for Justin Simmons, you know, a great career, obviously, multiple all-pro selections, became a second, I can't remember if you got three contracts in Denver,

Starting point is 00:11:11 if you got two. I think you got two, the rookie deal and then the big money deal to essentially reset the market at the safety position. Yeah. I think ultimately he is a ring of famer, no question to me. I mean, he spent so much time in Denver. I mean, he was here during terrible times, but that doesn't necessarily matter when it comes to the ring of fame.

Starting point is 00:11:34 I think you and I both agree that whenever the time comes, man, he is a no-brainer to get his name up in the stadium. And I can't wait for that day because he deserves that. And I don't know, what do you say? because I think there's maybe some debate among this among Broncos country. I think he's worthy for sure. I think he's worthy. And look, and I'm going to go to an example of someone who's in the ring of fame now.

Starting point is 00:11:58 John Lynch, he played from 2004 to 2007. And look, the Broncos didn't win a Super Bowl when John Lynch was here. John was very good, man. One of the hardest hitting safeties in the game, obviously, was instrumental in the Broncos, getting to that point in a 2005 season at a 13 to 5, I mean, 13 to 3 record. They lose unfortunate the AFC championship game. John Lynch had an impact. Justin Simmons,

Starting point is 00:12:19 and here's what I think kind of goes into the ring of fame category, right? It doesn't necessarily have to be like you had to, you had to have been on a winning team. There are so many great players that never play on winning teams. That precedent's already been sent with John Lynch. Obviously, we know John's a Hall of Famer. That's not the reason John got into the Broncos' Ring of Fame.

Starting point is 00:12:37 John was a very instrumental piece on and off the field for Denver that year. Justin, I will say this. I don't know if there was someone who had maybe a greater impact in the community during his time in Denver than Justin. Back to back to back, three-time Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee for Denver. What he did with the Justin Simmons Foundation was there. But his on-field impacts there, you mentioned it earlier. He was Patrick Mahomes kryptonite.

Starting point is 00:13:00 There's no player in the NFL that has intercepted Patrick Mahomes more than Justin Simmons. That is a very worthy notch to have on your belt. Someone that even Mahomes himself says he respects so much, Justin there. And Mahomes is going to be a first ballot Hall of Famer. 32 interceptions though throughout the course of his career and obviously I think 30 of those came in Denver. 442 interception return yards. One touchdown. 65 overall was his longest interception return.

Starting point is 00:13:29 But 71 passes defense throughout his career. This is a guy. We talk about a true ball hawking safety, a guy who could play that position. He comes up and he tackles well. Justin Simmons was that guy here. In my opinion, his stats, his production. his impact off the field. To me, it says, ring of famer.

Starting point is 00:13:47 And I know it's going to be debated. I know there's going to be fans that don't agree. I disagree with them. I think, Justin, by precedent, what Denver has in terms of the ring of fame now, he's earned that right. He's earned that honor. He has, Cody. I mean, no question about it.

Starting point is 00:14:00 And during those peak seasons where, I mean, he was second team all pro three different, or four different times, excuse me. But during some of his peak seasons of productivity, which I think you could argue from 2020 to 2023, that was really, the sweet spot. Maybe you could include a couple years before that as well. But that there, he had a couple seasons there where, man, just every time the guy was in the area, it was almost a turnover worthy play. 2022, he had six interceptions, but also three forced fumbles on top of that. Yeah. Twenty-twenty three interceptions and another pair of forced fumbles on top of that.

Starting point is 00:14:33 So over a two-year span, you're talking about 14 turnover worthy plays. Like we've been talking about this draft pick, Red Murdoch forcing 17 fumbles in a college career. Think about Justin Simmons forcing near 15 turnovers in a two year span of the NFL. I mean, so it's big time stuff. He was awesome. I'm trying to think, Cody, do you remember what was the, what was his pick six? I don't remember him having it. I can't think of it off the top of my head.

Starting point is 00:15:00 Do you remember which game it was? I think we need to find that out because I. Yes. What was it? It was his 2017 season here. So it was his second season in the NFL. The pick six. I believe against the Miami Dolphins.

Starting point is 00:15:19 Unfortunately, the Broncos lost that one, 35 to 9. I remember there's a Jay Cutler game and Julius Thomas. Jay Cutler and Julius Thomas against Denver in that game. I was the only bright spot as Denver got blown out in Miami. Man, that's terrible. Well, shoot, I mean, he's had plenty of other great plays, though. Oh, yeah. He redeemed himself against Miami.

Starting point is 00:15:39 I believe he had a game winning interception against Miami at one point, Cody. He did. He did. That was in the end zone, too. It was off of 2-0 or was it off? Fitzpatrick. The Fitz-Patrick magic ended with Justin Simmons. And so we know he was the Patrick Mahomes cryptonite,

Starting point is 00:15:55 but also I love the play, and I think everybody points to this play when you think of Justin Simmons. But like as a fan, that game against the New Orleans Saints, where Drew Breeze takes the Saints down the field to pretty much essentially guarantee a tie, right? The Saints, all they have to do is kick the extra point and the game is tied. Justin Simmons blocking, and this is the irrational mind of a fan.

Starting point is 00:16:20 You could sit there and think every game in that specific scenario, you could say to yourself, all right, if we just block this extra point and take it back for, you know, the two point conversion, it's now worth two points. Like you're doing all these things in your head. You sound insane, like tinfoil hat level stuff. And then Justin Simmons goes out there and makes it happen. He blocks an extra point. Will Parks takes it back. That was one of the coolest moments. I'm sure. of his career. But he said it was the first thing Sean Peyton brought up to him when they met each other when Sean Payton got hired by the Broncos. I would say my most heartfelt moment that I remember of Justin that stood out to me that I feel like just even as a media member, it gave me goosebumps

Starting point is 00:16:58 knowing the magnitude of the situation. Demarius Thomas passed away. We all know that. One of the hardest moments I think for everyone in Barranco's country. They play the Detroit Lions. They have a nice little at the beginning. They come out. They take the delay of game and they decline it so that, you know, they can honor DT. And then Justin happens to just be in the right spot, intercepts Jared Goff. And Demarius Thomas' decal logo that they had painted on the field was right there. He goes and he puts the ball on it. Like to me, just that moment, I was just like, that's why you love sports.

Starting point is 00:17:27 And fortunately, like, it could show like how sports can be so important during a tragic event, right? Like, obviously, I think Justin would trade any interception. I think anyone would for having Demarius Thomas still around in today's world. that was always a fond memory that I had like just in terms of an impact play, the magnitude of the situation just goes to show I really, really love sports is the emotion, the gravitas that we all fill around that. So Broncos country in honor, Justin Simmons, make sure you let us know here today. Drop it down below in the comments what your favorite memory is of the Broncos former all

Starting point is 00:18:02 pro safety, who is now retired. And let's know if you think he belongs in the ring of fame. I say he does. Serre says he does. And you know what? I think he should be at some point. We'll see how it all boils down here in the next handful of years, Broncos country. But with that said, that'll wrap up today's episode.

Starting point is 00:18:16 So enjoy your day. We'll catch you tomorrow for a brand new episode, Lockdown Broncos.

Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - LEGACY: Denver Broncos Justin Simmons RETIRES After Career Worthy of the Ring of Fame

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