A day after Chris Simms had a controversial take and was heavily criticized when he suggested Oregon quarterback Dante Moore slid too late, he’s now having second thoughts.
Simms posted a video on his X account on Sunday where he wanted to “take a moment to apologize” for his actions.
“I clearly did not show enough sympathy for the situation, just diving right into football stuff. And I am sorry for that,” Simms said. “I love College Football. I want to apologize to all College Football fans out there, especially the Oregon Duck fans.”
During the second quarter of Oregon’s 41-27 victory against USC on Saturday night, Moore departed from the game in an ambulance after Trojans linebacker Desman Stephens II took a cheap shot to the quarterback’s head.
After the play happened, Stephens II was seen celebrating the play and was ejected from the game. On Sunday morning, USC announced that Stephens II was suspended from their next game.
Simms, who serves as a college football analyst on NBC, made his comments when the game went into halftime. Now having a chance to reflect on it, he said he was having a “Debbie Downer moment.”
“I mishandled it, and I was wrong. And I’m sorry for that,” Simms said.
Near the end of the video, Simms mentioned how he has “tremendous sympathy” for the situation, bringing up a story where he “almost died from a hard hit 20 years ago.”
In 2006, Simms was playing quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and was removed from the game after rupturing his spleen.
“I understand the game, how brutal it can be, and how we have to protect each other on the football field,” Simms said. “So I am really sorry for that.”
The video ended with Simms wishing Moore a speedy recovery and applauding Oregon for pulling off the win against a USC team that was ranked No.12 in the country.
