Sports
Chris Simms
New Jersey-raised Chris Simms became a two-year starting quarterback at Texas before an NFL career and a second act as an NBC Sports NFL and college-football analyst.
- Roster rank
- #147
- Category
- Sports
- Subject type
- Person
- Profile source
- Published Texas Icons profile
Texas story
Life and career
Chris Simms grew up in New Jersey and arrived at the University of Texas in 1999. He became the Longhorns' starting quarterback for his final two seasons and left Austin for the NFL in 2003.
Simms played professionally with Tampa Bay, Tennessee and Denver and later moved into broadcasting. By 2026 NBC Sports listed him as an NFL and college-football analyst, co-host of PFT Live and host of Chris Simms Unbuttoned.
Defining work
What to know
- Texas Longhorns quarterback
- 2003 NFL draft
- NFL playing career
- NBC Sports analyst
Timeline
Key milestones
- 1999Begins University of Texas career.
- 2003Enters NFL.
- 2017Joins NBC Sports.
- 2026Continues as NBC NFL and college-football analyst.
Texas connections
Places in the story
Austin
University of Texas playing career.
Legacy
Why the story lasts
Simms's Texas claim comes from a nationally visible Longhorn career rather than birthplace or long-term residency.
His broadcasting career extended his profile well beyond his professional playing years.
Simms belongs in the Texas sports story primarily because of his University of Texas years, not because of birthplace or a lifelong state identity. Quarterbacking the Longhorns placed him inside one of the country's most scrutinized college programs and made his career part of the Austin football record before he moved into the NFL and, later, national football broadcasting.
Sources
Research trail
Cross-linked profiles