Simmons still playing catch-up with Bills
Published: December 09, 2009, 12:06 am
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The last 18 months have been a humbling experience for veteran Kendall Simmons.
He went from being a fixture on the Pittsburgh Steelers' offensive line to a seldom used backup with the New England Patriots but after being released last month, it didn't take him long to find work. Now he's the starting right guard for the Buffalo Bills, an injury-depleted group with 15 players on injured reserve, including offensive linemen Brad Butler, Seth McKinney and Eric Wood.
The season-ending injury to Wood, the promising rookie out of Louisville, forced the Bills to move quickly and find offensive line help. They landed Simmons, a former first-round pick by the Steelers in 2002, and plugged him into the starting lineup immediately.
"He's a very intelligent guy," said Sean Kugler, the Bills' offensive line coach. "He's a worker. Just him being a veteran with as young a group as we have, it's good for those guys to be around a guy who's been in Super Bowls and been in the playoffs. I think they'll be able to learn a lot from him."
Simmons can teach the young players a lot about overcoming adversity. Before the start of the 2003 training camp, he was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes after suddenly losing 45 pounds. After being hurt all of 2004 he returned in 2005 and started all 20 games on the Steelers' Super Bowl winning team.
Then during 2006 while rehabbing a heel injury, Simmons suffered frostbite on his left foot after falling asleep with a cooling devise attached to his foot. His heel was left raw by the incident. But his most devastating injury came during a Monday Night game against the Baltimore Ravens when he tore his Achilles' tendon in September 2008 and missed the rest of the season. Simmons was released by the Steelers in February 2009 and wonders what might have been if he hadn't tore his Achilles.
"Maybe I'd still be in Pittsburgh, you never know," he said. "I'm still trying to maintain and hold on. I've got a medical jacket full of surgeries and I've been blessed to come back from all of them."
The Achilles injury taught Simmons not to take football for granted.
"You have to appreciate where you are at," he said. "It also brings a different perspective on what's important, too."
New England signed Simmons to a three-year contract during the offseason to add experience to its offensive line. The problem for Simmons was that the group stayed healthy and the Pats have young interior linemen in Rich Ohrnberger, Dan Connolly and Ryan Wendell who needed to be developed so there wasn't any playing time for Simmons. He played in one game for New England before being released Nov. 9. The Bills signed him Nov. 24.
"There was no need for me," he said. "The guys that they had stayed healthy and they made a decision. That's just part of the business. I thought I was going to be home for a while."
Shortly after being released, Simmons took a three-hour flight back to his home in Mississippi, but as soon as he sat down to get comfortable there was a call from his agent. It was the Bills, who were in desperate need for offensive line help.
"I told my agent I can't make it that night, because I just got here," he said. "I'll take a flight out the next morning."
The Bills put Simmons to work quickly and he's started in games against Miami and the New York Jets. He leans on center Geoff Hangartner and right tackle Kirk Chambers frequently because he's playing catch-up.
"These guys have a leg up on me," Simmons said. "There's three quarters of the season under their belts and I've only played two games. I'm still trying to fit in, and I talk with those guys all the time so I can fit in. I'm going to try and bring in some experience and try to keep everything together. I can bring some perspective on how to do things."
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