The Kansas City Chiefs landed Ohio State offensive tackle Josh Simmons at the end of the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, betting big that he’ll fortify the offensive line in front of Patrick Mahomes while also gambling on the former Buckeye standout’s health.
After all, Simmons’ 2024 campaign came to a close when he suffered a season-ending jury last October, which leaves his availability being fully healthy for Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season up in the air.
During the Chiefs’ rookie minicamp, Simmons opened up about his rehab from the injury and his chances of taking the field Week 1.
“[I want to] attack rehab as hard as I can,” Simmons told reporters, via The Athletic. “That way, when training camp does come around, I can be the most help that I possibly can be. There’s nothing, really, I can do to kind of force — there are a lot of vets in here, and my thing is to stay out the way, work hard and be a helpful piece if I can.”
This past weekend, Simmons didn’t take part in full-team drills, according to multiple reports, but the fact that he was able to participate at all has to be encouraging for Kansas City.
Kansas City Chiefs Rookie Josh Simmons Scouting Report
At 6-foot-5, 317-pounds, Simmons has the potential to stop the revolving door from spinning for the Chiefs at offensive tackle, if he can get back on the field.
“An athletic tackle prospect with adequate size and length,” NFL Media’s Lance Zierlein writes of Simmons. “Simmons has experience starting on both sides. He suffered a season-ending knee injury in mid-October, so his recovery and timetable for return will need to be vetted. He’s a consistently fluid mover both inside the box and when asked to play in space, and he has the slide quickness to compete against NFL edge speed. He’s more positional than powerful in completing his run-blocking tasks, but he can fit into all schemes.”
Last season, Simmons didn’t allow a sack before getting injured and only allowed five sacks across his two-plus seasons as a starter in Columbus.
That kind of reliability likely played a vital role in pushing him up the Chiefs’ draft board and ultimately on general manager Brett Veach and Kansas City selecting him as a potential bookend at tackle.
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