Former NFL linebacker Wayne Simmons killed in car wreck

Friday, August 23rd 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. (AP) _ Former NFL linebacker Wayne Simmons, a first-round pick in 1993 who won a Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers, was killed in a single-car wreck Friday on Interstate 70, police said.

Witnesses said Simmons, 32, who lives in Lee's Summit, was speeding and weaving his green Mercedes through traffic when it went off the roadway about 2:45 a.m. in the eastern suburb of Independence, police said. The car rolled several times and landed in a ditch. The car's engine caught fire, and witnesses tried to pull Simmons out but could not undo the seat belt.

Firefighters arrived and put out the fire and pulled Simmons out. He was transported to Independence Regional Health Center and later pronounced dead. No one else was in the car. Simmons identity was confirmed by police Sgt. John Passiglia.

An autopsy on Simmons was planned, the medical examiner's office said.

``It's such a shock,'' Chiefs defensive end Eric Hicks told television station KCTV. ``Wayne was so energetic and tough. ... He was a very intense guy and I think one of the best linebackers in the country.

``He had a good career. It's really sad.''

Simmons, a 1993 first-round pick out of Clemson who won a Super Bowl ring with the 1996 Green Bay Packers, was traded to Kansas City in 1997.

The Chiefs cut Simmons the day after the ``Monday Night Meltdown,'' a 30-7 loss to Denver in 1998 in which Simmons and teammate Derrick Thomas were called for a total of five personal fouls on the Broncos' final touchdown drive.

Thomas, a close friend of Simmons, died in February 2000 of complications after being injured in a traffic accident that left him partially paralyzed.