Houston tight end Tanner Koziol, Oct. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
THIS IS SPORTS SPECTRUM’S WHAT’S UP PODCAST
WITH ANNABELLE HASSELBECK
On today’s episode of Sports Spectrum’s “What’s Up” podcast, we have Tanner Koziol!
We sat down with Tanner at the 2026 Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. He shares about his experience at the Senior Bowl, his favorite college football memories, and his faith in Christ.
Justin Simmons retires as a Denver Bronco, April 19, 2026. (Photo via X/@Broncos)
After nine NFL seasons, including two Pro Bowl selections, Justin Simmons is calling it a career. He made the announcement on Wednesday — 10 years to the day since he was selected in the third round as the No. 98 pick by the Denver Broncos.
He spent his first eight seasons in Denver before playing the 2024 season with the Atlanta Falcons; he didn’t play in 2025. He retires with 32 career interceptions, which ranks second in the NFL since 2016 behind Kevin Byard, and his 30 picks in a Broncos uniform rank sixth in franchise history.
“Being a Denver Bronco was more than just a team. It was my heart, my home and my story,” Simmons wrote in an Instagram post.
He was full of gratitude during his formal press conference on Wednesday as well.
“This is more than I deserve,” Simmons said. “This is truly one-of-one. I can’t put into words how thankful I am for the generosity and the hospitality that you’ve shown my family and I. Like I said, this is beyond my wildest dreams. Ten years ago to the day, walking into the building, eyes [wide] like this, not knowing whose hands I’m shaking, but just wanting to make a difference on the field.”
After a standout career at Boston College, Simmons made his mark on the NFL through appearing in 134 games (118 for Denver), including 124 starts. He was a second-team All-Pro four times, a two-time Pro Bowler, the NFL co-leader in interceptions in 2022, and Denver’s Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year nominee three different times.
The Broncos created a video montage with Simmons recapping his career, including some of the highlights, such as being named All-Pro and earning his first NFL sack — when he took down New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady as a rookie.
“Being a Denver Bronco was more than just a team. It was my heart, my home and my story.”
His tenure in Denver came to an end after the 2023 season when the Broncos opted to release him in order to save money in cap space. Even then, he responded with gratitude toward the organization that gave him a chance in the NFL.
After the transaction became official, he showed up at the team’s headquarters to say “thank you” and “good bye” to team employees.
“There is so much that goes into playing well on Sunday. Even outside of practice. The nutritionist, the athletic trainer, those in the training room, the people upstairs in the front office who help with logistics, and so many others,” Simmons told the Denver Post in June 2024. “I might not have said ‘thank you’ every day I walked in, but I wanted to make sure that my last time roaming those halls as a player I said ‘thank you’ and took time to let them all know that their work and words behind closed doors meant so much to me and played a big part in my success.”
Denver Post columnist Troy Renck wrote, “Employees who have been with the Broncos for the past two decades could not recall a player more gracious in his departure, more intentional in his purpose.”
Those thank-yous continued to come in bulk Wednesday during his retirement press conference. Simmons thanked everyone from the top of the organization and down, including former coaches, players and other staff members.
He also explained what led to his decision to retire. When the Broncos released him, he still wanted to play football and be somewhere that provided a chance to play in the playoffs, as the Broncos never made the postseason during his time with the team. He felt the Falcons gave him that, though it proved tough to be in a new city while his wife, Taryn, and three kids continued to live in Denver and commute to games on the weekends.
“Literally a week-and-a-half into it, it was the most miserable part of being in Atlanta. It was hard,” he said in the press conference. “I felt like I was parenting on FaceTime. It was hard being away from the kids. It was hard seeing Taryn struggle with them out here — not on her own but without dad it’s hard. I missed my wife. I missed my kids. I missed what was so familiar for eight years. It’s things that I took for granted and you don’t know until it’s gone.”
When the 2025 season came around and he was a free agent, he still wanted to play but felt like he needed to be very specific about where that would be. Nothing panned out with the few teams he was interested in.
“But while I was sitting on the couch cheering for the Broncos and watching some of my guys play around the league, there was a sense of peace that I hadn’t really felt before,” he said in his press conference. “Honestly every day that when by, I was still training, still hoping to play, but every day that went by I felt like my relationship with my family was growing. For eight years, I didn’t have that.
“… It came to the surface, like, it’s just time. Praying about it. We wanted to be very diligent and taking our time, but it was just time. I’ve always been so thankful for the crew that I’ve had around my life, the village of people that it takes because they helped me make that decision.”
Those who know Simmons are not surprised by any of this. His character on and off the field is fueled by his faith in Jesus. He describes himself on X as “an imperfect and unworthy follower of Jesus, saved by grace.” On Instagram, he calls himself a “child of the King.” He has long been outspoken about his faith and detailed his journey of coming to salvation in Jesus in an “I Once Was” video with Sports Spectrum.
In a devotional Simmons wrote for the Summer 2024 edition of Sports Spectrum Magazine, he said, “When you’re in tune with the Lord, His signs are glaring. Then it’s ultimately up to you to allow the Spirit to work within you to make you start walking in the direction of that sign. God knows what you’re going through. God knows what you’re praying for. Dive into what He’s trying to tell you. Don’t run away from it.”
Panthers teammates Jonathon Brooks (left) and Princely Umanmielen (right) get baptized, April 26, 2026. (Photos via X/@GriffinZett)
Jonathon Brooks is still working his way back from a second ACL tear, while Princely Umanmielen is coming off his rookie season.
But this week, the two young Carolina Panthers teammates took a step that had little to do with football. They both made public declarations of faith in Christ by getting baptized on Sunday at Vizion Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, with teammate Chuba Hubbard in attendance.
The team that prays together, stays together. #Panthers teammates Jonathon Brooks and Princely Umanmielen were baptized today; Chuba Hubbard was also in attendance to support. 📸 @GriffinZettpic.twitter.com/rbdmm9rAVE
For Brooks, the moment comes amid what’s been a long and arduous journey with injuries. After suffering an ACL tear and having surgery while in college at Texas, the running back suffered a second ACL injury just over a year later during his rookie season.
“Dear God … I trust in your plan,” he wrote on Instagram after the second injury.
The Panthers selected him with the No. 46 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft knowing he might not be ready right away after his first surgery in November 2023. He missed the first nine games of his rookie season before making his debut on Nov. 24, 2024.
But his return was brief. He appeared in three games, totaling nine carries for 22 yards and three receptions for 23 yards, before re-injuring the same knee against the Philadelphia Eagles. The setback cost him the rest of the 2024 season and all of the 2025 season, which ended with the Panthers losing to the Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round.
“It’s like an emotional roller coaster,” Brooks told Panthers.com after the 2025-26 season ended. “But you know, truthfully, I know that God has a plan for me and I know that He makes no mistakes and He’s using my story to show the world the amazing things He can do, and so I’m set on that.”
Thus, his focus has been on rehab and his faith.
“When you’re a believer, it’s not just God’s part. It’s not just God’s side of things; you have to go out, and you have to do,” he told Panthers.com. “You can’t just sit back and expect God to do it for you. You have to kind of meet Him in the middle, trust that He has a plan, but you also have to put in the work.”
Brooks’ faith is not new. He leaned on God heavily in the aftermath of his father, James “Skip” Brooks, dying at 49 on March 28, 2022, due to complications from a blood clot that impacted his heart. Jonathon was a freshman at Texas at the time.
“I’ve been through a lot in my life,” Brooks told the AP this week. “I lost my father. I’ve torn my ACL twice. Every single time I reverted back to my faith and for me, my baptism was a recommitment of my faith — to not only change myself, but from that day forward to stop making excuses for my surroundings.”
Brooks said the baptism was also a celebration after being cleared to participate in the Panthers’ offseason conditioning program without limitations. And Hubbard, though he may lose some carries next season due to Brooks’ return, wanted to be there to support his friend.
“He’s been building in his faith, building in his relationship with God, which I think is amazing,” Hubbard told the AP. “And in doing that, I think it also just kind of creates a resiliency in your mind and where you’re going there.”
Umanmielen’s path has looked different, but faith has also been central.
A third-round pick in 2025, the linebacker appeared in 16 games as a rookie while continuing to grow both on and off the field. His focus on his relationship with God dates back to his time at Ole Miss.
“Just keeping my trust in Jesus Christ and God. Just actually giving myself a routine, (too),” he told TheRebelWalk.com while at Ole Miss. “On some days I might not leave the facility until — I’ll go home during the day, but then I’ll come back around 6 or 7 — 9-9:30. Just keeping the routine and keeping my trust and having a good relationship with God.”
That foundation was shaped in part by his mother, who made it a priority to pray with him before games. Now as a pro, he displayed that faith in March by handing out food in downtown Charlotte and praying for those is need.
“Throughout these four years, my mom won’t let me go into a game without calling me and praying for me,” Umanmielen told TheRebelWalk.com about his faith. “That was a big thing. I think this season I really took it upon myself to find a closer relationship with God rather than just having my mom pray for me all the time. I really took it upon myself to make changes to my life so I can have that closer relationship to God. I still call her to this day so we can pray before the game, but I just took it upon myself this season to grow a stronger relationship.”
He also leaned on that faith when he suffered a couple of minor injuries in college, including an ankle injury and a shoulder tweak.
“It was really tough on me mentally,” he told TheRebelWalk.com, “but just going back to God again and keeping my trust and faith in Him, I came back even stronger.”
QB Cade Klubnik at the NFL Combine, Feb. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
The New York Jets’ quarterback room continued to take shape over the weekend with the addition of former Clemson star Cade Klubnik in the fourth round (110th overall) of the 2026 NFL Draft. He joins second-year pro Brady Cook as well as veterans Bailey Zappe and Geno Smith — both added this offseason — after New York traded Justin Fields to Kansas City in March.
The Jets moved up 18 spots to snatch Klubnik. The moment was the realization of a childhood dream for the 22-year-old, and he was itching to get started.
“I’m pumped, let’s go to work,” he said when the team called to inform him they were drafting him. “Loved y’all’s staff, loved spending time with y’all. Let’s do it.”
One coach Klubnik will soon get to know well is Frank Reich, whom the Jets hired in February as their offensive coordinator. Reich is a former quarterback, head coach and pastor.
“[The Jets] saw a competitor in me,” Klubnik later told NewYorkJets.com. “And they saw somebody who loves the game and loves winning, and is willing to do anything to go win.”
Klubnik was receiving first-round consideration before his senior season in 2025 with Clemson, with at least one mock draft projecting him to go No. 1 overall. But after a disappointing campaign in which his production dipped in many statistical categories and his team lurched to a 7-6 record, Klubnik’s draft stock tumbled. Still, he expressed gratitude to be able to continue his career in New York.
“God doesn’t promise that life is gonna be easy,” he said, “and He doesn’t promise that everything’s gonna go perfect. But He does promise that He’s gonna be with us every single step of the way, and He promises that His hand is gonna be right there with us. So when I hear those verses, it’s like that’s just confirmation of the way that we should be living.”
"…but He does promise that He's going to be with us every single step of the way." – @cadeklubnikqb
In the NFL, Klubnik will bring a winning mentality to a franchise that hasn’t had a winning season since 2015 and hasn’t made the playoffs since 2010. He won three state championships as a Texas high schooler and two ACC championships at Clemson. He also made an appearance in the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff.
But the feeding frenzy that is the New York sports media market will devour him if he sees playing time but doesn’t produce. Many players have succumbed to such pressure before, but Klubnik is prepared, with his feet planted on the firm foundation of Christ.
“Just being able to have the realization and the dependability that God is really always there for me is huge, because I know who Jesus says I am,” he said on the podcast. “With that, I don’t have to care as much about the opinions of other people.”
Later, Klubnik explained that while he may be known as a football player, his identity lies in something much deeper.
“The reason I’m here is just to impact people that I’m around every single day, for the gift of eternity. For the gift of Jesus coming to save us,” he said on the podcast. “That’s really why I’m here. I love football and I’m giving it everything I have every single day, but our main purpose while we’re here is to continue to share the Gospel.”
As Klubnik prepares for Jets rookie minicamp and offseason OTAs, he will seek to continue to trust in God’s perfect plan for his life, and for his NFL career.
THIS IS SPORTS SPECTRUM’S WHAT’S UP PODCAST
WITH ANNABELLE HASSELBECK
On today’s episode of Sports Spectrum’s “What’s Up” podcast, we have AJ Larkin!
AJ shares about his experience playing for Maryland Lacrosse, the impact of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in his life, and finding his identity in Christ.
