Chiefs Confident in Former Ohio State Buckeye Tackle as Long-Term Blindside Protector

The No. 32 overall pick in the NFL Draft often doesn’t come with much fanfare, especially if he’s a trench player like left tackle Josh Simmons. The former Ohio State Buckeye faced questions about a knee injury that caused him to slip in the draft process, but the Kansas City Chiefs feel they’ve found the guy who can protect Patrick Mahomes for the long term.

Head coach Andy Reid came away from mini-camp impressed with his new addition, despite the doubts on his readiness to contribute right away.

"We weren't quite sure how much we were going to be able to get out of him, but he looks strong,'' coach Andy Reid said, via ESPN. "You can tell that he rehabbed. He did a nice job with it.''

Simmons did some on-field work with the Chiefs throughout minicamps, but there were some concerns about whether he’d be a full participant at training camp. But Reid confirmed last week he expects the left tackle to be ready to contribute right away.

"He worked his tail off to get there,” Reid said, via ESPN. “So, we respect that part. He's done a nice job, he's worked well, and we'll just see what training camp does. It's different when things are flying fast up there and you've got full contact and pads on. We'll see how he does."

Simmons will be tasked with protecting the blindside of the league’s best quarterback. The Chiefs have had a few short-term answers at left tackle since their Super Bowl LV loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that initially highlighted their issues up front. Since then, however, Mahomes has been sacked 117 times, including a career-high 36 last season.

With that in mind, it’s no surprise that Simmons received a ton of interest from Kansas City in the lead up to the 2025 NFL Draft. After all, through six games and 158 pass blocking snaps in 2024, Simmons didn’t allow a single sack or hit on quarterback Will Howard. In 2023, he only allowed one sack.

"I felt like this was the team I was going to,'' Simmons said, via ESPN. "Nobody showed as much interest as the Kansas City Chiefs, that I know of at least. The Kansas City Chiefs just don't let anybody in their building. There's a different expectation when you get drafted by them.''

The Chiefs begin training camp on Tuesday, July 22, with the expectation that Simmons will be in pads, ready to take on the responsibility of keeping Mahomes upright for the foreseeable future.