The NFL career of former Clemson star linebacker Isaiah Simmons hit another roadblock on Tuesday.
The five-year veteran is expected to be part of the Green Bay Packers’ final roster cut, according to CBS Sports reporter Matt Zenitz.
The #Packers are expected to release linebacker Isaiah Simmons, sources tell @CBSSports.
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) August 26, 2025
The former Cardinals top-10 pick had joined Green Bay earlier this offseason after two years with the Giants. Has 329 career tackles. pic.twitter.com/ylexL8aonD
The former first-round NFL draft pick in 2020 by the Arizona Cardinals played there for three years before getting traded to the New York Giants, where he started just five games over the last two seasons.
With no massive post-rookie deal coming, Simmons joined Green Bay in April, hoping to get his once-budding career on track, but he was unable to catch on in three Packers preseason games. Green Bay gave him every opportunity to make the final roster, playing him on a team-high 129 snaps.
Simmons had a phenomenal collegiate career with the Tigers, playing safety and SAM linebacker. He lined up at every level of the defense and finished with 253 tackles, 10.5 sacks, four interceptions, and five forced fumbles in 44 games. He won the Butkus Award and was a unanimous All-America selection in 2019, playing in two national championship games and winning one.
Simmons looked like a clear-cut star at the next level, especially after he put on a freaky athletic performance at the NFL combine. That’s why the Cardinals used the eighth overall pick on him. However, he struggled to find his place on the defense. At first, it appeared the Arizona coaches struggled to figure out how best to use the hybrid player.
However, as his career went on, Simmons struggled to play in the box and cover the NFL’s athletic tight ends and slot receivers, finishing his three years in Arizona with 258 tackles and four interceptions. Instead of keeping him heading into a potential contract year in 2023, they moved on.
The Giants gave up a seventh-round draft pick in 2023 in hopes of putting Simmons into a more adaptable scheme, but he again failed to find much playing time, finishing with 71 tackles and one interception in 34 games.
What’s next for Simmons? He can hope that another team needs a linebacker due to injuries or a shortage of players at the position. It might be likelier that he ends up on an NFL team’s practice squad.