Re-Drafting the 2019 NFL Draft

Original Pick: Jeffery Simmons, DT, Mississippi State

The Titans snagged defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons with the 19th pick in 2019. However, Simmons went much earlier in this redraft, so Tennessee instead pivots to defensive tackle Ed Oliver.

Oliver, originally selected ninth overall by the Bills, has largely been overshadowed by draft mates like Dexter Lawrence, Quinnen Williams and Simmons. He’s never made a Pro Bowl in Buffalo, but he’s been a solid, if sometimes underappreciated, defender for the Bills.

While Oliver didn’t regularly start as a rookie, he’s grown into a foundational role for the Bills since then. He’s started every game in which he’s appeared since the beginning of the 2020 season, and he’s coming off arguably his best season as a pro.

Oliver finished his 2023 campaign with 51 total tackles, 9.5 sacks, 19 quarterback pressures and three passes defended. Some players perform their best in contract years, but Oliver used his new deal as motivation.

“When you get paid and people are saying, `Why you pay the guy?′ it kind of does something to you,” Oliver said in December, per John Wawrow of the Associated Press.

While Oliver hasn’t received the accolades other members of a deep 2019 defensive-line class have gotten, the 26-year-old has done plenty to justify his first-round draft status and his second contract. Tennessee should be quite pleased to have ended up with Simmons, but Oliver is a fine consolation prize in this redraft.