| Florida State Seminoles | |||||||||||||
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| Position: | Defensive analyst | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born: | (1984-12-23)December 23, 1984 (age 40) Tallahassee, Florida, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 233 lb (106 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school: | Tallahassee (FL) North Florida Christian | ||||||||||||
| College: | Florida State (2003–2005) | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2006: 1st round, 9th pick | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
As a player: | |||||||||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||
As a coach: | |||||||||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
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Ernie Sims III (born December 23, 1984) is an Americancollege football coach and former professional player who was alinebacker in theNational Football League (NFL). He is a defensive analyst forFlorida State University, a position he has held since 2024. He playedcollege football for theFlorida State Seminoles and was selected by theDetroit Lions in the first round of the2006 NFL draft. He also played for thePhiladelphia Eagles,Indianapolis Colts andDallas Cowboys.
A native ofTallahassee, Florida, Sims attendedNorth Florida Christian High School, where he began hishigh school football career by earning a varsity letter while only in the eighth grade, a feat not often heard of.[1] A two-way player atrunning back andlinebacker, Sims earned a total of five varsity letters. Playing in Class A, Florida's smallest classification, Sims led the Eagles to four state championships from 1998 to 2001. In his senior year, however, North Florida was eliminated in the region semifinals of the Class A playoffs, losing toJay 19–14.[2] As a junior, totaled 180 tackles, 41 tackles for loss, 12 sacks and forced seven fumbles on defense and rushed for over 600 yards and 17 touchdowns as a tailback. During his senior year, Sims registered 133 tackles (73 solo stops), 15 tackles for lost yardage, six forced fumbles, seven fumble recoveries and one blocked field goal attempt from his linebacker position and ran for 1,081 yards on 115 carries for 23 touchdowns as a running back.
Sims earned All-American honors byParade andUSA Today.Rivals.com ranked Sims as not only the top linebacker in his class but as the top prospect in the country.[3][4] As of 2023[update], Sims remained the only linebacker ranked atop of theRivals annual rankings. Recruited by virtually every school in the nation, Sims took official visits toGeorgia,Florida,Auburn,Miami (FL), andFlorida State. OnNational Signing Day, Sims chose the Seminoles over the Gators.[5]
At Florida State, Sims wore #34, a number that was retired in honor of former Seminole football player,Ron Sellers. Sellers gave Sims and the university permission for Sims to wear the jersey number.[6]
In 2003, as atrue freshman at Florida State, Sims played in all 13 games of the season, including theOrange Bowl againstMiami (FL), as a back-up outside linebacker. He finished ninth on the team with 42 tackles, and added two tackles for lost yardage, two pass break-ups, three quarterback hurries and a forced fumble. Sims was also one of the Seminoles' top special teams performers. He earned ACC Rookie of the Week for his efforts againstWake Forest, which included a season-high 10 tackles.
As a sophomore, Sims played in all 12 games, and made the starting lineup by the second week. For his exceptional play on the field in 2004, Sims was named to the second All-ACC team andESPN named Sims to their first-team All-American team. He finished second on the team with a single-season career-high 86 tackles, behind onlyA. J. Nicholson (88). Sims also recorded a single-season career-high nine tackles for lost yardage, 4.5 quarterback sacks, nine quarterback hurries, five pass break-ups, two forced fumbles and a blocked kick. In three games (North Carolina,Duke, andFlorida), Sims recorded double-digit tackles, including a career-high 12 tackles against the Gators. In the Seminoles' 36–3 victory overVirginia, he had nine tackles, a career-high two sacks and a blocked punt. Sims followed that performance with eight tackles, one tackle for lost yardage, a sack and a pass break-up againstWake Forest. Each of those weeks, Sims earned ACC Defensive Back of the Week, as the only player in the ACC to earn the ACC Defensive Back of the Week honors multiple times during the season.
In July 2005, Sims was arrested on charges of battery and resisting an officer, allegedly shoving his then-girlfriend "repeatedly to the ground" during an argument in the parking lot of a FSU residence hall.[7][8] Expectations for his junior year were high, asThe Sporting News and other publications named him to their pre-season All-American teams. Sims had a productive, but not spectacular junior season, starting all 13 games, including theOrange Bowl.
Sims majored inEnvironmental Studies at Florida State. In January 2006, Sims announced that he would forgo his senior season to focus on a career in the NFL.
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft11+1⁄8 in (1.81 m) | 231 lb (105 kg) | 30+3⁄4 in (0.78 m) | 9+1⁄4 in (0.23 m) | 4.54 s | 1.54 s | 2.61 s | 4.22 s | 7.31 s | 41 in (1.04 m) | 10 ft 5 in (3.18 m) | 25 reps | |
| All results fromNFL Combine[9][10] | ||||||||||||
Described as a "three-down linebacker who plays bigger than his listed size", Sims was selected as ninth overall in the first round of the2006 NFL draft by theDetroit Lions.[11] Sims was targeted by Lionsgeneral managerMatt Millen to bolster the Lions' defense at weakside linebacker. He was the highest selected Seminoles defender sinceCorey Simon in2000.
On July 30, 2006, he signed a 5-year, $15.735 million contract with $12.1 million guaranteed.[12] Sims started all 16 games his rookie season at outside linebacker, collecting 124 tackles (81 solo tackles) and was credited with a half sack and one pass deflection. On December 3, against theNew England Patriots, Sims had a career-high 13 total tackles. On December 31, Sims made a key tackle on fourth down to give the Lions a big win against theDallas Cowboys. On September 3, 2007, Sims was named one of five captains for the 2007 Detroit Lions. The Lions former head coach,Rod Marinelli, said that Sims' resembled that ofTampa Bay Buccaneers linebackerDerrick Brooks in his early years, being described as a fast, punishing, sure-tackler.
Sims was traded to thePhiladelphia Eagles on April 19, 2010, in a three-team trade. TheDenver Broncos sent tight endTony Scheffler and a seventh-round draft pick in 2010 to theDetroit Lions, the Lions sent Sims to the Eagles, and the Eagles sent a fifth-round draft pick in 2010 to the Broncos.[13]
On August 2, 2011, Sims signed with theIndianapolis Colts as anunrestricted free agent. He wasn't re-signed at the end of the year.
After the loss ofSean Lee to injury, on October 24, 2012, theDallas Cowboys signed him as an unrestricted free agent to provide depth atlinebacker. Sims quickly became a starter by his second game (against theAtlanta Falcons) and eventually the unit's defensive play caller, after injuries decimated the position further. He finished the season with 42 tackles, one sack, 2 quarterback pressures and 3 passes defensed.[14] He also recorded 10 tackles in the Cowboys' emotional week 14 win against theCincinnati Bengals, a day after the team received news of the death ofJerry Brown and the arrest ofJosh Brent.
On March 18, 2013, Sims was signed to a one-year contract at the league minimum salary.[15] He registered 42 tackles, a forced fumble and started 6 games while replacingBruce Carter,Justin Durant andSean Lee at different times.[16] He wasn't re-signed at the end of the season.
On June 3, 2014, Sims signed 1-year deal to replace the suspendedDaryl Washington. He was released on August 7.[17]
| Year | Team | GP | COMB | TOTAL | AST | SACK | FF | FR | FR YDS | INT | IR YDS | AVG IR | LNG | TD | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | DET | 16 | 125 | 82 | 43 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2007 | DET | 16 | 134 | 97 | 37 | 1.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| 2008 | DET | 16 | 113 | 71 | 42 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2009 | DET | 11 | 49 | 32 | 17 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2010 | PHI | 15 | 55 | 48 | 7 | 2.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 2011 | IND | 13 | 61 | 32 | 29 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2012 | DAL | 10 | 44 | 27 | 17 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2013 | DAL | 12 | 42 | 31 | 11 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 109 | 623 | 420 | 203 | 5.5 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 12 |
Key
On May 29, 2009, Sims married Brooke McGriff, who is pursuing a degree in education atTallahassee Community College.[19]
Sims' mother, Alice Sims, formerly Alice Bennett, was anAll-Americansprinter on the Florida Statetrack and field team from 1980 through 1983.[20] His younger brother, Marcus Sims, a highly regarded high school running back, announced in February 2006 that he will also play his college football at Florida State before transferring to theUniversity of North Alabama . His father Ernie Sr. was also a running back at Florida State.
Sims owns a small collection of animals: 5 dogs and 1 type of reptile.[21]Fox produced a segment for the Lions' game against theMinnesota Vikings in Detroit in 2007 which showcased his pets.
Sims currently resides in his home town of Tallahassee, FL, where he owns his own athletic training facility, called Ernie Sims' Big Hits Performance. He also has his own local sports talk radio show.