Tennessee football’s top 10 NFL DEs ever

Teams played for:

• San Diego Chargers, 1992-1996, 1998-1999
• Washington Redskins, 1997

Part of an elite trio of junior college players who arrived on Rocky Top in 1990, Chris Mims helped Tennessee football repeat as SEC Champions that year. He then was a solid player in 1991, and he finished his two seasons with 90 total tackles, 52 of which were solo, nine and a half sacks, another 10 tackles for a loss, two forced and recovered fumbles and 12 passes broken up.

Mims then became a first-round draft pick by the San Diego Chargers, and he was a guy who could play in the middle or on the outside on the line at 6’5″ 288 pounds. After moving around his first two years, Mims became the full-time starter at defensive end in 1994. That year, he helped the Chargers reach the Super Bowl, where they would lose to the San Francisco 49ers.

For three straight years, Mims was a highly productive starter in San Diego. He then went to the Washington Redskins and spent one year starting full-time at defensive tackle, which didn’t work out so well. As a result, he returned to San Diego and finished his last two years as a reserve in that system, still managing to be effective.

Tragically, Mims passed away at age 38 in 2008. However, he had a very successful pro career after thriving on Rocky Top. His eight-year run finished with him appearing in 104 games and starting in 64 of them. In terms of production, he had 42 career sacks, 10 forced fumbles, eight fumble recoveries, a safety and 221 total tackles, 107 of which were solo.