Broncos' Justin Simmons Talks Aaron Rodgers Rumors, Demaryius Thomas, More in B/R AMA

Justin Simmons is fresh off a Pro Bowl season in 2020 after setting a career high in interceptions with five. On Monday, he joined B/R for an AMA that covered his Pro Bowl selection, the NFL's biggest trash-talker, his thoughts on the Aaron Rodgers saga, Demaryius Thomas' retirement and more.

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@notdeucetatum What was your favorite memory at BC?

My favorite memory at BC is by far our Red Bandana Game for Welles Crowther. Him and the Crowther family...

We were playing USC, and I think they were ranked somewhere in the top-10, and we ended up winning a high-scoring game. The fact we won a high-scoring game against a top-10 opponent was amazing. Fans stormed the field, the whole nine.

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@CryingCarr Which safety did you model your game after?

I would say there's bits and pieces of safeties I watched growing up. Brian Dawkins, his passion and intensity. Another guy I feel like always does the little things is Eric Weddle. A guy that maybe doesn't get as much notoriety that he should.

I wouldn't say there's one guy who I model my game after, there's a bunch of guys.

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@rutilab What was your welcome to the NFL moment?

We were playing the Patriots my rookie year at home. It was my first time playing them; Tom & Co. everyone knows the legacy they come with. I'm not sure what happened, but a false start was called or…

All I remember was the ref standing right next to me and Tom was yelling at him and practically quoting the rulebook. I was walking away as a rookie, and I remember hearing that and being like, "Welcome to the NFL." Of course this guy would be quoting the rulebook.

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@BostonMecca How did it feel to make the Pro Bowl? (Especially because there wasn't an actual game—did that kind of ruin some of the feeling?)

I'll say it's probably the most significant/important achievement in terms of my short football career because of all of the ups and downs and the challenges that this previous season presented. There was a lot of responsibilities that fell on myself and Kareem. That's why I take a lot of pride in the fact that at least on a personal level we were able to persevere. Not being able to play in the game was a bummer, and obviously completely understanding that it was all for safety reasons, but it stinks that it had to have happened around your first Pro Bowl bid.

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@belacsmoon What inspired you to create your foundation? (Focuses on youth initiatives) 

I spent the first four years of my career attending all of my teammates' events. Both my wife and I really wanted to take our time and not just jump into something we were half-hearted about. It took us four years to find people we were comfortable working with that had the same passion for our youth. Both my wife and I, we know the importance of speaking life into our youth. When you invest your time or your energy into our youth, you'll see how they just blossom. You're able to help them reach dreams that they didn't even think were achievable. I'm a product of that. I know how important it is to invest in our youth. My wife and I want to make sure the youth out there know there are people in their corner that will always try to help them every facet to give them any type of support that they need.

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@fitchkarma66 Who is the funniest player in the locker room? 

The funniest guy...that's a good question. Von is funny. I may be biased cause I'm around DBs a lot. I think Kareem is the funniest guy. He's the older vet.

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@SmokingGun The best part of playing in Denver is what?

My favorite part has just been the fan experience. I knew about Denver before getting drafted there. The year prior they had won the Super Bowl. Growing up, my dad was a football fanatic and told me about the Orange Crush, but I didn't know much.

Being from South Florida, I didn't know much about out West.

The fans are the best. They're crazy, they're loud and supportive. And it's just the best to see the sea of orange in the crowd.

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@parker_A_O Is there a specific player you have gone up against who has talked the most trash?

Outside of Tom...he talks a lot of trash. The guy that talks trash the most that I've been on the field with is Philip Rivers.

It's like that competitive, rival school around the block vibe. It was great. You could tell he enjoyed it whether they were winning or losing.

Philip Rivers is by far the biggest trash talker that I've been around.

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@dillonerf21 Your favorite NBA player? 

I was a big Kobe Bryant fan growing up. I love his game, mindset and his attitude. I loved it all. I will always be Mamba for life. I love watching Steph and Dame. If you ever get to watch the Warriors or Blazers, those guys are always putting on a show.

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@delusionalfan1 Your favorite current safety to watch outside of your own teammates?

I love watching Ramsey. I watch Devin McCourty week in, week out. Minkah Fitzpatrick. Tyrann Mathieu. Any time, I play one of those teams, I'll watch a ton of film on them. Budda Baker, Eddie Jackson, just to name a few.

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@mario_judah How did it feel to hear about Demaryius Thomas retiring? 

It was crazy. Crazy in a good way. I saw the video the Broncos released, it brought back some memories.

DT is one of the most underrated receivers. A lot of people wouldn't know that he was just a genuinely great dude. T.J. Ward was the first guy that reached out to me when I got drafted. In the locker room, guys would say if you ever need anything hit me up, but DT went out of his way to introduce himself. That was just his character. His work ethic and all that stuff, that'll always be there. But as a teammate, I appreciated his character the most. I'm happy for him. It seems like he came to this decision and was content with it.

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@jacobbenvenuto How do you feel about the Aaron Rodgers rumors and would you like to see him in Denver?

Yea, that's obviously the elephant in the room. Every Broncos player has been asked. I always say that obviously AR is AR. He's a HOF type of QB. You know what he's gonna bring to any team he goes to.

I never like focusing on the what ifs. If it happens, it happens. 

But I don't like playing on the what ifs. Right now, Drew Lock and Teddy are our guys going into the season. I want to make sure that they know I'm rolling with them, and I got their back. I'm confident in what they can do for our team.

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Rapid Fire

@SFB_ Favorite Movie? 

Interstellar

Friday series. I always sit down and watch if it's on TV.

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@bucketsbob00 Favorite cartoon?

Rocket Power. That was my favorite

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@tarantino1 Your favorite shoe?

My fave shoe now is probably Vans. Specifically, my Fear of God vans. Those are probably my all-time favorite shoes. Stephon Marbury had really affordable basketball shoes in all different colors for $15, I used to love those things as a kid. You couldn't catch me without them.

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@sunsin6ix Your go-to pregame snack?

Not really. If I need something, I'm constantly eating fruit. I love pineapple.

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@cottonwood Do you eat mac & cheese with a fork or a spoon? 

Fork.

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@aendorf22 The first big purchase you made after you were drafted was ___?

My truck. It was a Ford F-150 King Ranch.