Justin Simmons heads back to Denver this weekend, the place he called home for eight seasons, where he earned four second-team All-Pro nods and two Pro Bowls.
The Atlanta Falcons safety, whom the Broncos cut in the offseason, said he harbors no ill will for his former club.
"No bad blood on my end. I have nothing but love," Simmons said, via the team's official website. "They'll always be in my heart as a great organization. And then at the same (time), knowing where I am now, really looking forward to going in there and finding a way to win a football game."
A third-round pick by Denver in 2016, Simmons grew into a ballhawk in the Mile High City, snagging 30 interceptions and 604 total tackles in his eight seasons. However, he was a cap casualty this offseason as the Broncos dealt with the fallout from Russell Wilson's contract situation.
"You see guys all around the league go back to places where they played," Simmons said, "and they embrace the challenge of working through whatever it is, the physical aspect, the emotional aspect of it. So, yeah, I'm really looking forward to it."
Simmons returns to Denver as part of a Falcons secondary that has played well but gotten little help up front. Atlanta has the lowest pressure rate (27.4 percent) and the lowest sack rate in the NFL (2.4%), per Next Gen Stats. The Falcons have just nine sacks in 2024 (three fewer than the 31st-ranked Panthers).
With Simmons and Jessie Bates, Atlanta boasts one of the best safety tandems in the NFL. They'll need the duo to fly around Denver on Sunday afternoon to slow Bo Nix and a Broncos offense that has made strides in recent weeks.