JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- One of the true elite players in the NFL is officially out of the AFC South as the Jacksonville Jaguars prepare their run, but that isn't the only good news from the Jeffery Simmons trade.

The Tennssee Titans followed the Indianapolis Colts' lead in a Week 8 fire sale, dealing Simmons, the NFL's best defensive tackle, to the Chicago Bears for two first-round picks and a fourth-round pick. With Simmons heading to the Windy City, the Jaguars are now quietly one of the biggest winners from the blockbuster.

Why the Jaguars Are Winners

Jacksonville of course benefits in a big way from the Simmons trade when it comes to their push for an AFC South title. Though they will still have to play Simmons when they visit the Bears in Week 13, they will not have to face him in Weeks 10 and 12 in AFC South battles with the Titans, where Simmons was their only real threat defensively. But the Jaguars are winners for bigger reasons than that.

Simply put, the Jaguars need defensive help. Front line defensive help, especially as it pertains to their depth. The Jaguars were never, ever, ever going to land Simmons in a trade for the same exact reasons they were never going to get DeForest Buckner, but Simmons landing in Chicago does eliminate the Bears from several other moves that could overlap with the Jaguars.

The Bears were, well, the logical landing spot for every single top defensive lineman, even beyond Simmons. In The Athletic's NFL Trade Deadline big board, the Bears were listed as a best fit for all nine defensive tackles/edge defenders ranked in the top-15. All nine! This includes Simmons, Buckner, but also other names like Khalil Mack, Daron Payne, and Moro Ojomo ... all names we have pointed out as fits for the Jaguars.

Could the Bears look to go truly all-in and still add a talent like Mack to play alongside Simmons? Never say never in the NFL, but it is clear the Bears took their absolute best shot with the Simmons trade. They are already down three draft picks, are they really going to be in a rush to send more picks? Even if it is a Day 3 pick for a player like Mack? Chances are the answer is no.

This is good news for the Jaguars, who rank in the bottom quarter of teams in both sack and sack rate despite being a top-7 team in pressure rate. The Jaguars have talented defensive ends in Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker, but they badly need to add an interior pass-rusher and some backup edge rushing talent.

Jaguars head coach Liam Coen made it clear Wednesday: the Jaguars' bed has been made when it comes to the pass-rush, at least right now. Thanks to the Simmons trade, perhaps that can change.

“I mean, expectations to me are… To me, we are who we are. That's where we're at," Coen said. "It needs to get better. It has to improve for our team to continue to ascend and go where we want to go, but I do have a lot of confidence and faith in that group.”

The Jaguars have always made sense as buyers at the deadline, at least as it relates to adding some defensive line help. So did the Bears, and the Bears had arguably more ammo to work with considering their cap situation. Now that the Bears are out of the picture, the Jaguars' urgency to make a move along the defensive line should still be high, but there should be some comfort knowing that one team is out of the running.

If the Jaguars end up adding a talent like Payne, Mack or Ojomo by Nov. 10, we can likely point back to today's trade and Chicago bowing out of contention as a big reason why. That is why the Jaguars are winners from the biggest blockbuster of the season.