One of the great Broncos of the past decade is officially done playing football.
Safety Justin Simmons, who spent all but one of his active seasons with Denver, announced his retirement Wednesday at the age of 32. He did so as a Bronco, where he spent the better part of a decade building a legacy as a fan favorite on the field and a model in the community.
Simmons’ announcement came 10 years to the day after Denver drafted him.
“My time in Denver literally shaped me into the man that I am,” Simmons said in a retirement announcement video shared by the team. “To the best fans in the world and Broncos Country, thank you so much for all your support both for myself and for my family.”
Simmons was selected in the third round of the 2016 draft by the Broncos and played eight years in blue and orange, earning a pair of Pro Bowl nods and making second-team All-Pro four times. He blossomed into one of the best safeties in football, logging 30 interceptions over his eight seasons in Denver.
Simmons was released by the Broncos in the spring of 2024 and spent the ensuing season with the Atlanta Falcons on a one-year deal. A free agent through the 2025 season, Simmons never latched on to a team and has not played in a game since Atlanta’s regular-season finale on Jan. 5, 2025.
Simmons, his wife Taryn and their children still call Denver home and Simmons’ legacy off the field will endure every bit as long and perhaps even more profoundly than his on-field exploits.
Simmons has done extensive work with the Boys & Girls Club in Denver among many other endeavors through the Justin Simmons Foundation.
Simmons occupies a unique place in Broncos history. His numbers and impact are that of a Ring of Fame-type player. His time with the franchise, though, did not feature much winning.
Simmons arrived to the Broncos as the club came off a Super Bowl victory to cap the 2015 season.
Selected by then-general manager John Elway to play for head coach Gary Kubiak, Simmons saw the field as a rookie but Denver finished in third place in the AFC West at 9-7 and missed the postseason. They didn’t make the playoffs in any of the following seven seasons under head coaches Vance Joseph, Vic Fangio, Nathaniel Hackett or Sean Payton, either.
Then Simmons was released but took some solace in latching on with the Falcons, who looked like a contender in the NFC South. Instead Atlanta missed the postseason and the Broncos have made it each of the past two years, following up a 10-7 Wild Card year in 2024 with a 14-3 campaign and subsequent run to the AFC Championship Game last season.
Still, Simmons will be universally revered by Broncos Country for who he was as a player and who he is as a man.
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