# Jerry Markarian: Markarian argues Jeffery Simmons, now with the Bears, is a strong contender to win Defensive Player of the Year and notes they are on pace to match their career-high 11-sack season. **Claimed:** Nov 3, 2026 **Pundit:** Jerry Markarian — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/jerry-markarian **Outlet:** Sports Illustrated — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/sports-illustrated **How it reached us:** published in writing **Original:** https://www.si.com/nfl/bears/onsi/jeffery-simmons-dpoy-odds-skyrocket-after-bears-week-8-victory 2 checkable claims — 1 award pick and 1 player season number — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call. It names 2 players and teams, each linked to their own record. None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in. > If he can build on his dominant debut, he'll stand a good chance to add another notch to his already impressive belt. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Jeffery Simmons to win Defensive Player of the Year** - Kind: Award Picks · About: Jeffery Simmons, Chicago Bears - Verdict: not settled yet - **Jeffery Simmons to record 11 sacks** - Kind: Player Season Numbers · About: Jeffery Simmons, Chicago Bears - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Jeffery Simmons — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/jeffery-simmons - Chicago Bears — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/bears ## What others said about the same people - John Middlekauff on Caleb Williams: Middlekauff expects either Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson to win this year's MVP, calling them the two best players in the league. They are pessimistic on the Bears, forecasting six or seven wins and saying they'd bet Caleb Williams doesn't work out as a franchise quarterback. They also see Oklahoma's John Mattier as a first-round pick who'll be in the Heisman mix. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/deaaf3f6-e53e-4080-a0ca-d5f872b54c6a (scored 0) - Shaun Calderon on Jeffery Simmons: Calderon argues the 0-5 Titans won't turn their season around, that Cam Ward won't be benched soon, and that Jeffery Simmons stays in Tennessee while Tony Pollard and Calvin Ridley are likely trade candidates with modest returns. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/fcfebcd7-04de-406f-aa74-4c404a9f8b0e (scored 0) - Pete Prisco on Chicago Bears: Prisco gives score predictions for every Week 9 NFL game, picking the Bengals to rout the Falcons in Madrid, the Cowboys to rebound at Indianapolis, and the Jaguars to win in Baltimore without Lamar Jackson. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/dc43909b-bc7f-47aa-b208-5cf7c95844bc (scored 100) - Bryan DeArdo on Chicago Bears: DeArdo picks the Bears to beat the Buccaneers on Sunday night in a defensive game, predicting a 20-16 final score. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/7b882443-b481-48fb-b19b-e7f989d85e46 (scored 97.62) - Danny Parkins on Chicago Bears: Parkins named the seven AFC teams they believe are already set as the playoff field, expects Chicago, Buffalo and Kansas City to win this week, took Green Bay over New England and Atlanta over Cincinnati outright, and kept Bills–Bears as their Super Bowl matchup with the Giants still winning the NFC East. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/272d1f8a-06f7-4b8b-8480-94d370ae5e6f (scored 100) - “Stanford Steve” Coughlin on Chicago Bears: Stanford Steve said the Bears would beat the Buccaneers on Sunday night, and called a player they referred to as "Yakis" their Rookie of the Year. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/eb50c9d5-281b-4810-b41b-a5d6da11c438 (scored 100) ## More award picks The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Nick Wright on Sam Darnold: Wright picks Seattle to beat New England in the Super Bowl by a 27-17 final score, describing a semi-comfortable win, and names Sam Darnold as their Super Bowl MVP pick. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/8ff42b18-5a45-40e1-b3b6-17612cfca395 (scored 0) - Eric Mangini on Drake Maye: Mangini picked the Patriots 23-20 with Drake May as Super Bowl MVP, and earlier named Kayshon Boutte ("Kaeshawn Booty") as their dark horse MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/332dce8c-f71c-4f26-a976-8f4615a9f9bd (scored 0) - Chris Broussard on Drake Maye: Broussard picked New England to beat Seattle 24-21, with Drake May winning Super Bowl MVP, and named Cooper Kupp as their dark horse MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/1247ee30-3338-4940-8fc9-977cc215ff59 (scored 0) - Willie Colon on Sam Darnold: Colon picked the Seahawks to win 24-14 with Sam Darnold as Super Bowl MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b6655a6f-9a44-46d4-8c76-0d96b7334211 (scored 0) - Nick Wright on Rashid Shaheed: Nick picked Seattle to win the Super Bowl 27-17, citing Seattle's defense, coaching against young quarterbacks and schedule strength, and named Rasheed Shaheed as their dark horse Super Bowl MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/1fe4abc6-28e3-412b-ab6e-d2f65f25682f (scored 0) - Danny Parkins on Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Parkins picked Seattle to win 27-16 with Jaxon Smith-Njigba as Super Bowl MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/3667c28e-88b0-4d8e-bebd-6ef088550e4f (scored 0) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=jerry-markarian