An Olathe North grad is on the verge of becoming a top 10 pick in the NFL Draft
During the first couple of days at the NFL Scouting Combine, players exchange their stories, divulging into one another’s backgrounds and history. They sit together through position group meetings, so naturally, an easy conversation starter is to ask about a player’s hometown.
Clemson standout Isaiah Simmons has a unique answer.
“I say Kansas, and everybody’s like ‘Kansas?’” Simmons said.
The reaction tells the big-picture story — the one Simmons saw coming all along but few others can truthfully admit they did. Of how just a three-star athlete from Olathe North High School is on the verge of becoming a top 10 — nay, maybe a top five — pick in this year’s NFL Draft.
See, Simmons tore it up in high school. Put up such great numbers on both sides of the ball that he was an all-state safety and an all-conference wide receiver. His athleticism caught the eyes of his Olathe North coaches before he had even played a down of varsity football.
He starred in track and field, too. Won back-to-back state championships in the long jump. Dominated all of the metrics — speed, jumping, agility — you’d want in a college athlete.
Which leaves Simmons with only one guess as to why so few schools were on board — and those that were arrived late.
He did it in Kansas.
“I would always send my film out to a lot of schools that didn’t offer me,” Simmons said. “Sometimes I would hear things back, like, ‘I’ll send it to our coordinator’ and then never hear anything back.
“Most teams wouldn’t even respond.”
Then Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables made a late trip to Olathe. The Tigers had lost several players to the draft in 2016. They were a bit desperate. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, I’m so glad I showed up to Olathe,” Venables told the recruiting website 247sports after seeing Simmons play.
“I’ve had a lot of time to think about (why Simmons didn’t attract more interest),” said Chris McCartney, Simmons’ coach at Olathe North. “We’ve had a lot of kids from the Kansas City area go on and play on Sundays, but I think they’re underrated. I think Kansas City has a lot of great football players, but they kind of get overlooked.”
Four years after schools ignored receipt of his film, Simmons is the center of a discussion at the NFL combine involving the new look of defensive prospects.
Versatility.
In an era in which tight ends play more like receivers and every NFL team must learn to defend the pass and pressure the quarterback first and foremost, Simmons is seen as a prospect who could revolutionize the way the league views defensive prospects. Put simply, he can do it all. He is running with the linebackers during the combine, but the position labeled on his black T-shirt is almost comical. He played in five spots at Clemson — sometimes during a single game.
Asked how he replies when teams ask which position he plays, Simmons said, “Defense.”
He was asked several times this week if there’s an NFL comparison for his versatility. He brushed off a couple before landing on one — Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu.
Years ago, it wasn’t seen as a positive to be a player without a singular position. A jack of all trades. A master of none.
Simmons has changed conventional thinking. A master of them all. He’s seen as a potentially elite outside linebacker. Or maybe a playmaking safety who can shift to slot cornerback. Or maybe even an edge rusher.
Or perhaps all of the above.
It’s no wonder he’s a consensus top 10 pick in April.
“When we’re talking about defensive backs being versatile, there’s a guy that kind of redefines that,” Chiefs general manager Brett Veach said, acknowledging he was assessing a player who should be off the board long before Kansas City picks at No. 32. “He’s one of those guys you can line up and play anywhere. It doesn’t matter what defense you’re running — it’s hard to look at him and say he couldn’t help because he does so many things. That will certainly make him a coveted player.”
A coveted player. You know, unlike he was in high school.