Titans Defensive Tackle Jeffery Simmons Trusts Brian Callahan and Ran Carthon

Getting buy-in from the locker room is one of the most important tasks for a new coach or a newly promoted vice president. Ideally, this process should start with the top players who have the most influence and then filter throughout the team. 

Jeffery Simmons' reaction to Brian Callahan replacing Mike Vrabel as coach suggests a promising start for the new Tennessee Titans coach and executive vice president/general manager, Ran Carthon.

Jim Wyatt, writer/editor for tennesseetitans.com, interviewed Simmons. Simmons expressed his enjoyment of working with Vrabel but is looking forward to the future with Callahan.

"I will start out with Coach Vrabel," Simmons told tennesseetitans.com "We had a great relationship, and we still have a great relationship. We communicate still. You hate to see it. You hate to see it happen...

"I think coming up this season for us is it's going to be one of those seasons where we have to really reestablish ourselves in Tennessee. Having a chance to meet Coach Callahan in person, when I was in the building, I could tell that he is ready, he wants to win." 

Simmons will be one of the leaders to encourage teammates to believe in the team-building efforts of Callahan and Carthon.

"I am going to make sure I can keep the locker room tight, and make sure no matter what it might be, no matter the situation, of course, we just got a new head coach, I think it's going to be simple: Buy in or you just have to get left behind," Simmons said. "For me, being a captain and a leader on this team, my job is to keep holding my end up on that."

Simmons also expressed belief in Carthon's skills as a leader. 

"From the time I first met Ran until today, he's a guy that I respect. I don't question what he does," Simmons said. "I don't question what coach he (was) going to get because I know he made the right decision. From the time I met him, I know he's a guy that came from a winning organization there in San Fran before we got him, so he knows what it takes to win."