By MIKE HERNDON, columnist
For a decade, all NFL defensive tackles existed in Aaron Donald’s shadow. Sure, there were plenty of great players at the position between 2014 and 2023, but Donald always existed in a tier of his own, separated above his contemporaries.
When he retired after the 2023 season, the heir to the interior defensive line throne, Chris Jones, appeared poised to take his spot at the top of the position. And for a season, he did. Jones was excellent in 2024, posting an impressive 88 total pressures on the way to his third consecutive First-Team All-Pro selection.
However, this year Jeffery Simmons has pretty clearly been the best defensive tackle in football and that has never been clearer than during Sunday’s dominant 10-pressure, 1.5-sack showing in Cleveland.
