NFL analyst Chris Simms apologizes for insensitive remarks after death of Dolphins fan
NFL analyst Chris Simms has apologized for insensitive comments he made following the death of a Miami Dolphins fan who trolled him and others as social media personality TuAnon.
Simms, appearing on Meadowlark Media’s God Bless Football podcast, expressed remorse for his initial comments about Dolphins fan Eric Carmona during PFT Live with colleague Mike Florio on June 8.
“I’m disappointed in myself. You guys know me. I don’t try to be a bad guy. I know I got a big mouth and opinions about football,” Simms said.
“I dropped the ball. I was insensitive. I didn’t need to go that route. I let a bigger conversation take ahold of me for a second and it was the wrong time to bring it up. I meant no disrespect to Tua [Tagovailoa] or the Carmona family at all, but that was totally bad timing and insensitive by me. I got no excuse. I’m sorry. That’s all I can say.”
Carmona, a Navy veteran, died in a motorcycle crash on June 1 in Murrieta, California, according to the Murrieta Police Department. He was 30. A GoFundMe post said Carmona died on his way to work. He is survived by his wife, Vanessa, and four children.
Simms donated $1,000 to the Carmona family, while Florio donated $2,500 following their discussion of Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s $10,000 donation.
“It is a nice gesture. It really is,” Simms said of Tagovailoa’s donation. “It’s a horrible thing, a horrible accident. He obviously is a huge Tua fan. Also a huge guy that trolled me a lot on Twitter.”
Simms also said:
“This is a deep subject and I think it’s societal and I won’t go into it because I’m only going to get myself in trouble. We’re also setting an example like, ‘Hey here’s money to a guy who was very negative too.’ That’s all I’m saying.”
Carmona’s GoFundMe page has since exceeded $110,000 in donations.