.jpg) Simms in 2019 | |||||||||||||||
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| Position | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (1955-11-03)November 3, 1955 (age 70) Springfield, Kentucky, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 216 lb (98 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Southern (Louisville, Kentucky) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Morehead State (1974–1978) | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1979: 1st round, 7th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||
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Phillip Martin Simms (born November 3, 1955) is an American former professionalfootballquarterback who played in theNational Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with theNew York Giants. After playingcollege football for theMorehead State Eagles, Simms was selected in the first round by the Giants as the seventh overall pick in the1979 NFL draft. Simms was namedMost Valuable Player (MVP) ofSuper Bowl XXI, after he led the Giants to a 39–20 win over theDenver Broncos and set the record for highest completion percentage in a Super Bowl, completing 22 of 25 passes (88%), as well as the highest passer rating in a Super Bowl at 150.9; both of these records still stand. He was also named to thePro Bowl for his performances in the1985 and1993 seasons.
He finished his career with 33,462 passing yards and would go on to be a career broadcaster of NFL games—first as an analyst forESPN, then as an in-game color commentator withNBC andCBS. He left CBS in 2024.[3] He is the father of former NFL quarterback, assistant coach, and current NFL football analystChris Simms and former quarterbackMatt Simms.
Simms was born inSpringfield, Kentucky, on his grandfather's farm, a place now called Maple Hill Manor inWashington County, where he attended St. Dominic's Elementary. While inelementary school, his family moved toLouisville and he went to St. Rita Catholic grade school. Simms was the quarterback of the Trojans ofSouthern High School in Louisville and graduated in 1974.
Simms chose to attendNCAA Division I FCS (formerly Division 1 AA)Morehead State of theOhio Valley Conference in nearbyMorehead.
TheMorehead State Eagles ran a ball-control offense,[4] and Simms' numbers were unspectacular—in his senior season he completed 92 of 173 passes for a 53.2%completion percentage and had sixtouchdown passes, 11interceptions, and 1,229 yards.[4] The Ohio Valley moved up to the newDivision I-AA in1978, but the Eagles went 2–6–1; they failed to make the postseason during his college career.[4] Simms finished with 409 completions in 835 attempts for a 48.9% completion percentage.[4] He also totaled 32 touchdowns, 45 interceptions, and a school-record 5,545 yards.[4] Morehead State renamed its football venue of Jayne Stadium toPhil Simms Stadium prior to the Eagles' 2025 homecoming game on October 18.[5]
Before the1979 NFL draft, newSan Francisco 49ers head coachBill Walsh flew to Morehead State with assistant coachSam Wyche to work out Simms.[6] Walsh was so impressed that he planned to draft Simms in the third round, preferring him over the quarterback they ultimately took,Joe Montana ofNotre Dame.[7] But theNew York Giants decided to make Simms theirfirst round pick (seventh overall) to the surprise of many.[8] As Simms acknowledged, "most people have never heard of me."[8] When Simms's name was announced by CommissionerPete Rozelle in front of the audience at the draft in New York, his selection was booed loudly by the Giants fans in attendance.[9][10] He was the second quarterback taken;Jack Thompson ofWashington State went toCincinnati with the third overall pick. Simms was not then happy being a Giant either, "All I was thinking was which teams I would rather play for—theGreen Bay Packers, theKansas City Chiefs,San Diego, San Francisco..."[11] But he became popular with his teammates, who jokingly dubbed him "Prince Valiant" in his rookie training camp.[12]
Simms won the first five starts of his rookie year in1979;[13] finishing with a 6–4 record, threw for 1,743 yards and 13 touchdown passes, and was named to the NFL All-Rookie Team.[14] He was runner-up forRookie of the Year, behind future teammateOttis Anderson.[15]
Simms' next four years were marred by injuries and inconsistent play. He finished the1980 season with 15 touchdowns and 19interceptions, while completing a subpar 48.0% of his passes for 2,321 yards.[16] In 1981, Simms threw for 2,031 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions on 54.4%completion percentage[16] before suffering a separated shoulder in a November 15 loss to theWashington Redskins.[17] With Simms out, the Giants went on a run led byScott Brunner and advanced to the second round of the playoffs. Simms suffered a torn knee ligament in a preseason game against theNew York Jets, preventing him from playing the entire1982 season.[18] Following the season,Ray Perkins resigned as head coach to take over the same position at theUniversity of Alabama, and was replaced by the team'sdefensive coordinatorBill Parcells. In the coming years this change would prove crucial to the Giants and Simms.
One of Parcells' first decisions as coach was to replace Simms as the starting quarterback with Brunner.[19] Simms asked to be traded after the benching, but his request was ignored.[20] During the sixth game of the Giants'1983 Season, Simms came in to replace the struggling Brunner against thePhiladelphia Eagles. On his third drive, Simms suffered a season-ending injury when the thumb on his throwing hand hit a player's helmet on his follow-through. The injury was reported as a dislocation, but according to the book,Simms to McConkey, written byPhil McConkey, Simms, andDick Schaap, the injury was much more severe, with the thumb literally hanging off after impact, and the bone sticking out through the skin.[21]
During his first few years on the team, Giants fans were merciless in their treatment of Simms, who they felt was a disappointment. He commented that his wife "had to sit up in the stands and listen to them cuss me."[20] However, in 1984, after many seasons plagued by injuries and up-and-down play, Simms finally emerged as a team offensive leader. During his 1983 injury,offensive coordinatorRon Erhardt talked Simms into watching more game film, something he had not regularly done in college or the pros. He gained a better understanding of NFL defenses, his team's formations, and pass protection schemes, and improved his ability toaudible at the line of scrimmage. He also changed his strength training regimen in an attempt to make his body more resistant to injury.[22] He passed for 4,044 yards (second most in theNational Football Conference (NFC)), 22 touchdown passes, and led the Giants to a playoff berth.[23]
He was voted to the Pro Bowl and named Pro Bowl MVP[16] as he led the NFC to a comeback win over theAmerican Football Conference (AFC) by throwing three touchdowns. In 1985, he passed for 3,829 yards, 22 touchdowns,[16] and led the Giants to 10 victories, the most for a Giants team since1963.[24] In a game against theCincinnati Bengals during the1985 season, Simms passed for 513 yards—the fifth most passing yards in a single game in NFL history.[25] In 1986, he passed for 3,487 yards and 21 touchdown passes duringa season in which the Giants won 14 games. In week 11, he completed a desperate fourth-and-17 pass to Bobby Johnson late in the game to set upRaul Allegre's game-winning field goal, which gave the Giants a 22–20 victory over theMinnesota Vikings.[26] Simms later commented:[27]
It's my favorite game in my career, because it's everything I always wanted to be as a player. I wanted to be tough, making big throws, immune to pressure, not worried about outcomes. It was truly like standing on the tee box in golf and there's trees on each side and water and you just go 'Man, I'm gonna rip it down the middle.' And no other thought crosses your mind.
On January 25, 1987, the Giants faced theDenver Broncos inSuper Bowl XXI. In the biggest game of his life, Simms had one of the finest performances in Super Bowl history.[28] He completed 22 of 25 passes for 268 yards, setting Super Bowl records for consecutive completions (10),[29] accuracy (88%),[29] andpasser rating (150.9).[30] In addition, he threw 3 touchdown passes and his passer rating set an NFL postseason record.[30] "This might be the best game a quarterback has ever played", Giants coachBill Parcells later said.[31] Two of the most famous plays from the game were theflea flicker to McConkey, and the touchdown pass caught by McConkey off of the fingertips of Giantstight end,Mark Bavaro.[32] The Giants defeated the Broncos 39–20, and Simms was namedMVP of Super Bowl XXI. He is credited for being the first to use the phrase "I'm going to Disney World!" following a championship victory.[33]
Simms performed well in the strike-shortened1987 NFL season, finishing with the second highestquarterback rating in the NFC.[34] He threw for 2,230 yards, 17 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions.[16] He passed for 3,359 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions while completing 54.9% of his passes in the1988 season.[16] The Giants rebounded from a 6–9 record in 1987 to finish 10–6[24] but fell just short of the playoffs due to the NFLtie-breaker system. In1989, the Giants started 8–1 and finished 12–4, Simms passed for 3,061 yards, 14 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions on 56.3% completion percentage.[16] He performed consistently most of the season except for a two-game stretch against theEagles and49ers where he produced seventurnovers, six of which resulted in points for the opposition.[35] He also struggled in the Giants' playoff game against theLos Angeles Rams, and the Giants lost 19–13. In1990, Simms was having one of his finest seasons, leading the NFC with the highestquarterback rating (92.7)[36] and the Giants to an 11–3 record, but his season was cut short due to a broken foot suffered in the Week 15 game against the Giants' eventualSuper Bowl XXV opponent, theBuffalo Bills. The Giants defeated the Bills 20–19 in the Super Bowl withJeff Hostetler filling in at quarterback.
After the Giants' Super Bowl victory, Parcells resigned and was replaced by the team's running backs coach,Ray Handley.[37] One of Handley's first decisions was to select Hostetler as the team's starting quarterback following his performance in Super Bowl XXV.[37] Simms saw only spot action in two games prior to Week 13, when Hostetler broke his back in a game against theTampa Bay Buccaneers. Simms finished the game and reclaimed the starting job, but won only once in his remaining four starts as the Giants failed to return to the playoffs at 8–8.
Simms was named the starter for the1992 season after beating out Hostetler for the job in preseason. Simms suffered a severe arm injury in a Week 4 loss to theLos Angeles Raiders and missed the remainder of the season. Between the 1991 and 1992 seasons, he amassed a combined 1,905 yards, 13 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions while completing 59.3% of his passes.[16] The Giants finished the 1992 season at 6–10, which led to Handley's firing and the hiring of former Denver Broncos coachDan Reeves. As part of an overall house cleaning, Reeves released Hostetler and named Simms his starting quarterback.[38] Simms started all 16 games in 1993, being one of only seven quarterbacks to do so, and led the Giants to a resurgent11–5 season including a victory over theMinnesota Vikings in the playoffs.[39] He underwent shoulder surgery after the1993 NFL season to repair atorn labrum. The surgery was successful, and team doctor Russell F. Warren's prognosis for recovery was excellent, and Simms was expected to be ready in time for training camp.[40] However, later during that offseason, Simms was released by the Giants, and subsequently decided to retire. Upon his release, co-ownerWellington Mara called it "a day of overwhelming sadness."[41] In an interview in the 2024 documentary "The Duke: The Giant Life of Wellington Mara", Simms recalled that Mara didn't agree with the decision to let him go and was willing to make changes to the front office to ensure Simms stayed, but Simms declined saying it would just make it worse.
Simms considered playing for theCardinals in 1994 and theBrowns in 1995, but eventually decided to stay retired.[42][43]
In his 14 seasons with the Giants, Simms completed 2,576 out of 4,647 passes for 33,462 yards and 199 touchdowns.[16] His career passing yardage total ranked him at 11th in NFL history at the time of his retirement.[44] He added 349 carries for 1,252 rushing yards and 6 touchdowns on the ground.[16] He set team records for most passes completed and attempted in one game (40 and 62, respectively), season (286, 533), and career (2,576, 4,647), most career touchdown passes (199) and most 300-yard games in a career (21).[45] Simms still owns some of the New York Giants passing records, althoughEli Manning has surpassed most of them: season passes (387 completed, 618 attempted), career completed passes (4,895), career touchdowns (366), career 300-yard games (53).[46][47]Sports Illustrated considered Simms to be the "Most Underrated Quarterback" in NFL history in their August 27, 2001, issue entitled, "The Most Overrated and Underrated".[7]
| Legend | |
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| Super Bowl MVP | |
| Won theSuper Bowl | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | ||
| 1979 | NYG | 12 | 11 | 6–5 | 134 | 265 | 50.6 | 1,743 | 6.6 | 13 | 14 | 66.0 |
| 1980 | NYG | 13 | 13 | 3–10 | 193 | 402 | 48.0 | 2,321 | 5.8 | 15 | 19 | 58.9 |
| 1981 | NYG | 10 | 10 | 5–5 | 172 | 316 | 54.4 | 2,031 | 6.4 | 11 | 9 | 74.0 |
| 1983 | NYG | 2 | 0 | — | 7 | 13 | 53.8 | 130 | 10.0 | 0 | 1 | 56.6 |
| 1984 | NYG | 16 | 16 | 9–7 | 286 | 533 | 53.7 | 4,044 | 7.6 | 22 | 18 | 78.1 |
| 1985 | NYG | 16 | 16 | 10–6 | 275 | 495 | 55.6 | 3,829 | 7.7 | 22 | 20 | 78.6 |
| 1986 | NYG | 16 | 16 | 14–2 | 259 | 468 | 55.3 | 3,487 | 7.5 | 21 | 22 | 74.6 |
| 1987 | NYG | 9 | 9 | 4–5 | 163 | 282 | 57.8 | 2,230 | 7.9 | 17 | 9 | 90.0 |
| 1988 | NYG | 15 | 15 | 9–6 | 253 | 479 | 54.9 | 3,359 | 7.0 | 21 | 11 | 82.1 |
| 1989 | NYG | 15 | 15 | 11–4 | 228 | 405 | 56.3 | 3,061 | 7.6 | 14 | 14 | 77.6 |
| 1990 | NYG | 14 | 14 | 11–3 | 184 | 311 | 59.2 | 2,284 | 7.3 | 15 | 4 | 92.7 |
| 1991 | NYG | 6 | 4 | 1–3 | 82 | 141 | 58.3 | 993 | 7.0 | 8 | 4 | 87.0 |
| 1992 | NYG | 4 | 4 | 1–3 | 83 | 137 | 60.6 | 812 | 6.7 | 5 | 3 | 83.3 |
| 1993 | NYG | 16 | 16 | 11–5 | 247 | 400 | 61.8 | 3,038 | 7.6 | 15 | 9 | 88.3 |
| Total | 164 | 159 | 95–64 | 2,576 | 4,647 | 55.4 | 33,462 | 7.2 | 199 | 157 | 78.5 | |
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | ||
| 1984 | NYG | 2 | 2 | 1–1 | 47 | 75 | 62.7 | 397 | 5.3 | 0 | 2 | 65.2 |
| 1985 | NYG | 2 | 2 | 1–1 | 29 | 66 | 67.1 | 390 | 5.9 | 2 | 1 | 67.1 |
| 1986 | NYG | 3 | 3 | 3–0 | 38 | 58 | 65.5 | 494 | 8.5 | 8 | 0 | 131.8 |
| 1989 | NYG | 1 | 1 | 0–1 | 14 | 29 | 48.3 | 180 | 6.2 | 0 | 1 | 53.8 |
| 1990 | NYG | 0 | 0 | Did not play due to injury | ||||||||
| 1993 | NYG | 2 | 2 | 1–1 | 29 | 51 | 56.9 | 218 | 4.3 | 0 | 2 | 50.9 |
| Total | 10 | 10 | 6–4 | 157 | 279 | 56.3 | 1,679 | 6.0 | 10 | 6 | 77.0 | |
As of the 2017 NFL off-season, Simms still held at least 13 Giants franchise records, including:[48]
On September 4, 1995, Simms' jersey was retired in a halftime ceremony of a game versus the Dallas Cowboys. During an emotional speech, Simms stated that he wanted to don his jersey one final time, and throw "one more pass" to teammateLawrence Taylor.[49] Simms later commented, "[a]ll of a sudden it kind of hit me, I've put Lawrence in a really tough spot; national TV, he's got dress shoes and a sports jacket on, and he's had a few beers and he's going to run down the field and I'm going to throw him a pass."[50] Simms then motioned for Taylor to run a longer pattern, and after 30–40 yards, threw him the pass. Taylor later stated that the situation made him more nervous than any play of his career, "I'm saying to myself (as the pass is being thrown), 'If I drop this pass, I got to run my black ass all the way toUpper Saddle River because there ain't no way I'm going to be able to stay in that stadium'."[50] Taylor caught the pass however, and the capacity crowd in attendance cheered in approval.[51]
After his retirement as a player in 1994, Simms first joined ESPN then went on to joinNBC's lead broadcast crew, teaming withDick Enberg andPaul Maguire on NBC's coverage ofSuper Bowl XXX andSuper Bowl XXXII. Simms also announcedweightlifting at the1996 Summer Olympics and served as a sideline reporter on theNBA on NBC forNBC Sports.[52] In 1998, he moved to CBS with the AFC package, teaming first withGreg Gumbel (through the end of the2003 season) and later withJim Nantz on theCBS's lead broadcast team. He also worked withArmen Keteyian,Bonnie Bernstein,Lesley Visser, andTracy Wolfson. Since 2009, he has been a host ofInside the NFL on Showtime (another CBS holding) withJames Brown andCris Collinsworth. In 2017, he was replaced byTony Romo as a color commentator and joined the CBS pregame showThe NFL Today.[53][54] He left CBS after his contract expired at the end of the 2023 season. Simms has also worked on Westwood One as an analyst for select games in 2024.[55] Simms returned toNBC Sports as a college football analyst in 2025.[56]
Simms joined WFAN'sBoomer and Gio as a weekly guest in 2024.[57]
Simms was part of the commentary team along with Nantz in theMadden NFL13,25,15, and16 video games.
Outside of football broadcasting, Simms co-hosted theMiss Universe 2002 pageant with actress and modelDaisy Fuentes. He made an appearance as himself on the CBS soap operaAs the World Turns in 2007, and in February 2010 made an appearance onThe Price Is Right (with Nantz) to present aSuper Bowl XLIV showcase. In the same month, he appeared as himself (again with Nantz) on theHow I Met Your Mother episode "Rabbit or Duck". On November 13, 2014, Simms appeared uncredited on the episode "Just a Regular Irregular" of the CBS television seriesElementary. Simms' cameo was as a consultant toSherlock Holmes in the art ofknife throwing. Furthermore, Simms was forced to settle a debt with Holmes by loaning him aSuper Bowl ring for the purpose of advancing the investigation.[58]
Simms and his wife, Diana, live inFranklin Lakes, New Jersey. They have three children:Chris, Deirdre, andMatt. His son-in-law is former NFL linebackerBrian Toal, who was schoolmates with Matt.[59] Simms is fond of New Jersey, remarking in 1987: "I wasn't overjoyed about coming to New York. When I thought of New York, I thought of New YorkCity. But out here, it's just like anywhere else."[20]
In 2011, Simms was inducted into the Kentucky Pro Football Hall of Fame.[60]
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