ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Justin Simmons did not make his retirement decision because football stopped mattering.
He made it because, in his words, “it was just time.”
Simmons officially retired as a Denver Bronco, exactly 10 years after the franchise drafted him. The full-circle timing mattered, but the bigger story from Simmons’ press conference was why he chose now and why retiring with Denver meant so much to him. According to the Broncos, Simmons is retiring as a Bronco 10 years to the day after being selected by Denver in the 2016 NFL Draft, after eight seasons with the team, 30 interceptions as a Bronco, four All-Pro selections, and three Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year nominations.
Simmons said the decision grew out of what he learned after leaving Denver and spending last season with Atlanta. He admitted he still wanted to play after the Broncos moved on, and he thought the Falcons gave him a chance to chase the playoff experience he never got here. But the reality of being away from his family hit fast.
“When I first got to Atlanta, I was really excited,” Simmons said. “But literally a week-and-a-half into it, it was the most miserable part of being in Atlanta. It was hard. I felt like I was parenting on FaceTime. It was hard being away from the kids. It was hard seeing Taryn struggle with them out here.”
That experience reshaped how he thought about the future. Simmons said that while he was still training and still hoping to play, he started to feel something different while watching the Broncos and spending more time with his family.
“While I was sitting on the couch cheering for the Broncos and watching some of my guys play around the league, there was a sense of peace that I hadn’t really felt before,” Simmons said. “So that sat with me. It settled. It came to the surface like, it’s just time.”
That line gave the announcement more depth than a standard retirement ceremony. This was not Simmons being pushed into the next step. This was Simmons recognizing it.
He also made clear that Denver was still home.
Earlier in the day, Simmons told the Broncos that, “Being a Denver Bronco was more than just a team. It was my heart, my home and my story.” At the press conference, he doubled down on that feeling, saying he will always be a Broncos fan and describing himself as “almost like a proud big brother” while watching the team last season.
That part matters because Simmons’ Broncos career was not defined by easy years. It was defined by surviving hard ones.
Simmons acknowledged how difficult the post-Super Bowl 50 era became, saying the losing wore on him because he was often the one answering for it and because he genuinely believed each year the Broncos could break through.
“It was a hard eight years,” Simmons said. “I felt like I was the one who had to answer all the hard questions. I hated it. … It just felt like there was a lot asked, and I feel like I fell short.”
That honesty was one of the defining traits of Simmons’ Denver tenure. He was one of the few constants through coaching changes, ownership transition, roster turnover, and losing seasons. He said Wednesday that more than anything, he hopes Broncos fans remember that he cared and that he gave everything he had.
“I just did my best,” Simmons said. “I hope that the legacy that was left is that [I was a] guy that really did care and passionately cared. I wanted to win, and it didn’t work out.”
That may end up being the most honest summary of his career in Denver.
Simmons arrived with Hall of Fame-level ambition, saying he wanted to continue the legacy of great Broncos safeties and even chase Steve Foley’s interception record. He admitted Wednesday that he fell short of some of those goals, but said he is most proud of how he handled adversity and kept fighting through years when the team could not quite get over the hump.
Now the focus shifts to what comes next. Simmons said he plans to spend the next year planning, shadowing, and exploring broadcast work, while also leaving the door open for a long-term role impacting young people at the high school level.
“I’m going to do broadcast stuff,” Simmons said. “But I think the real impact at least I know I’m going to do, at least down the road, is some type of high school position.”
He also sounded like someone ready to experience Denver differently. Simmons said he cannot wait to attend a Broncos game as a fan, tailgate, and see Broncos Country from the other side.
“I can’t wait to go to a game and tailgate,” Simmons said. “I’ve never done that ever.”
That is what made Wednesday feel bigger than a retirement announcement. It felt like the closing of one chapter and the return home for the next one.
Justin Simmons is retiring as a Bronco. But if Wednesday made anything clear, it is that he is not going anywhere when it comes to Denver.
