You will find below a declaration by the owner of the New Orleans Saints Gayle Benson and the organization of the saints after the death of Dan Simmons today at the age of 78. Simmons was chief equipment director of the team from 1973 to 2014:
“Our thoughts are with Elaine and the Simmons family because we have undergone a significant loss with the death of Dan. He played an essential role in the daily operations of the equipment room and the changing rooms. Dan was a proud Saint of New Orleans and touched the lives of thousands of players, coaches and staff members throughout his mandate, making significant contributions to this franchise.”
Simmons, from Saint-Louis and a Vietnam veteran who served in the American navy for four years, was director of team chief of the team for 42 seasons. In the past 10 years after his retirement as head of chief equipment, he has been coordinator of former students / club legends, using his vast contacts to continue to be a precious resource for the organization.
Simmons, affectionately known as “chef” to all those who came into contact with him, worked a total of 858 holy pre-season, regular season and matches in playoffs during his mandate as director of chief equipment. He proudly met the equipment needs of 10 of the franchise eliminatory teams and celebrated the Super Bowl Xliv des Saints championship. He managed the equipment needs for thousands of players during the 14 mandates of the franchise head coaches.
The dedication of Simmons to the saints has been recognized nationally. In 2022, it was recognized by the temple of renown of professional football with a “prize of excellence”, recognizing important contributors to the game. During the meetings of equipment managers of the 2015 National Football League in Houston, Simmons was honored with a life price made by his colleagues of the 32 clubs. In 2010, he was elected to the renowned temple of Saint-Orleans, as well as the former deputy director of equipment Silky Powell, such as the winners of Joe Gemelli “Fleur-de-Lis” this year. After the seasons of 1994 and 2005, Simmons and its staff were selected during a vote by their peers for the Whitey Zimmerman Memorial Award, awarded each year to the staff of the NFL equipment who exceeds the usual requests to the post.
Simmons is survived by his wife, Elaine, their three children – Amy, Tracy and Tony – and four grandchildren.
