Chiefs OT Simmons keeping reason for 22-day absence ‘in house’

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chiefs rookie left tackle Josh Simmons, the team’s first-round selection in last April’s NFL draft, spoke with reporters Wednesday for the first time since he rejoined the team more than two weeks ago. During his 22-day absence from the Chiefs, Simmons missed four games for what the team called a “family situation.”

Although there were questions surrounding his absence, Simmons declined Wednesday to share details as to why he left the Chiefs the morning of Oct. 12, just hours before kickoff against the Detroit Lions.

“I kind of want to keep that in house, with all due respect,” Simmons said. “I know everybody wants to know, but it’s something I want to keep, you know, [private]. … Obviously, family is the biggest thing Polynesians lean on. When you get in that, it just makes everything a lot better.”

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Simmons flew back to his hometown of San Diego for what the team called a personal reason. He returned to the Chiefs’ training facility Nov. 3, the day the team’s bye week began following its loss to the Buffalo Bills.

“He had to take care of business and he took care of it,” coach Andy Reid said Wednesday of Simmons.

While away from his teammates, Simmons explained that he had access to gyms and his playbook to be properly prepared for his return to the starting lineup, which was this past Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos.

“I was making sure I was working out, just keeping my feet alive and making sure my nervous system was woken up,” Simmons. “I was ready to play. The communication with the team was very transparent, especially at the end. I had some teammates that were always checking in on me. When you have teammates like that, it definitely [helped].

“Being away from the game, I was itching to get back and fight for them.”

Against the Broncos, who lead the NFL with 49 sacks on the season, Simmons was impressive in one-on-one matchups against edge rushers Jonathon Cooper and Nik Bonitto, who led the league in pressures entering Week 11. Simmons allowed just two pressures on 49 pass-block snaps, according to Next Gen Stats.

“There’s always room [for improvement], but I think as a front we swung as hard as we could,” Simmons said of the Chiefs’ offensive line. “I mean, [Bonitto] is an extremely gifted player, 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 brush that [rust] off.”

After he recovered from the torn patellar tendon in his left knee — an injury that forced him to miss the end of his final collegiate season at Ohio State — Simmons excelled in training camp, earning the starting role. The Chiefs are optimistic that he can be the player who finally solves their longstanding problem at left tackle, the offensive line position tasked with protecting quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ blind side.

In Simmons’ absence, the Chiefs turned to four-year veteran Jaylon Moore, who was the team’s biggest acquisition in free agency when he signed a two-year contract worth $30 million (including $21.2 million guaranteed) to potentially be the starting left tackle. Moore’s role, however, changed once the Chiefs acquired Simmons. With Moore in the lineup, the Chiefs went 3-1 and averaged 27.5 points.

“For being away for a few weeks here, I thought he did a nice job,” Reid said of Simmons, who didn’t miss any first-team practice repetitions last week. “He’s got to clean up a couple of things with the penalties. But his effort, his attitude and everything was great. He was able to keep everything focused back to the football part of it.”

In six games, Simmons has surrendered just a 5.4% pressure rate, the third-lowest among left tackles — minimum 200 pass-block snaps — and the lowest by any rookie left tackle since at least 2018, according to Next Gen Stats.

“He’s a great player,” Mahomes said Wednesday. “He’s gotten better every week that he’s played. He’ll continue to get better. For him, it’s just to continue to stack days on days of just pushing himself to be the best player that he can be. The sky’s the limit. He’s just got to keep pushing to get even better.”

Simmons vowed to be with the Chiefs for the remainder of the season, one the team hopes ends with another memorable playoff run. In his opening statement Wednesday, Simmons wanted to express his gratitude for being allowed to have the time he needed before returning to the Chiefs.

“I want to thank the entire Kansas City and this club for having my [back] for the time I was away from the team,” Simmons said. “It showed how much love this team and city has for me. I can’t wait to give it back to them.”