This past Saturday was a day that Trenton Simpson will never forget.

After biding his time as a rookie linebacker with the Baltimore Ravens this season, the former Clemson star finally got his chance to shine and ended up having a breakout game in the Ravens’ regular season finale against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

And Simpson took full advantage of his opportunity, turning in a standout performance that saw him make a bunch of big plays during Baltimore’s eventual 17-10 loss at M&T Bank Stadium — including his first career NFL sack, which came in the third quarter when he raced untouched through a hole at the line of scrimmage to bring down Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph.

“I’ll never forget that,” Simpson said of the sack. “The feeling when I saw it open and I was like, ‘OK, I gotta make a play,’ and then the excitement on the celebration was just all the trusting the process throughout the season and keeping my confidence. It was the best feeling in the world.”

That sack certainly wasn’t the only time Simpson made his presence felt in Saturday’s game. Overall, the 6-foot-2, 238-pounder posted two tackles for loss, seven total tackles and a quarterback hit.

“It was a blessing, man. I give all the glory to God,” Simpson said of his big game. “I’m just so excited to get out there and get an opportunity, and then go out there and make a couple plays. The excitement that my teammates had for me meant the most for me, from like (star linebackers) Roquan (Smith) and PQ (Patrick Queen) – them guys hyping me up and giving me the confidence all week to go out there and just play ball was the best thing I could have. And to go out there and have the performance, I give all credit to God and them boys in my linebacker room.”

Playing behind a pair of Pro Bowl linebackers in the aforementioned Smith and Queen, Simpson has primarily been a special teams player as a rookie. He had played only 20 defensive snaps this season entering Saturday’s game, but was on the field for 26 defensive snaps against the Steelers and flashed his exciting potential.

“I’m very strong in my faith, so I just always knew God had a plan for me,” Simpson said of staying patient. “Just trusting the process and knowing that whenever God wanted me to go out there and my opportunity was to come, that I know I would be ready, and I feel like today God gave me a chance and I went out there and I just made the most of my opportunity today.”

Simpson was well aware that his opportunity was coming, with the Ravens sitting some starters after having already clinched the top seed in the AFC playoffs.

So, Simpson said he was “super prepared” for his moment in the spotlight going into the game, thanks in part to him picking the brains of his veteran teammates.

“Just staying up studying, knowing my opportunity was coming this weekend. I knew for sure that I was going to get a chance to go out there and play,” he said. “All week I was asking Roquan, PQ, everybody in the linebacker room questions to pick up tendencies on what they’ve seen playing the Steelers from their time in the league. Just getting a chance to go out there, I feel like I was very prepared and it showed today.”

A third-round choice in the 2023 NFL Draft (86th overall) – widely regarded as an excellent value pick for the Ravens — Simpson finished his first regular season in the NFL with 13 total tackles (two for loss), one sack, a quarterback hit and one fumble recovery.

As Simpson noted, “this is just the beginning” for him as a pro – and the future looks bright for the former five-star prospect, who finished his highly productive Clemson career (2020-22) with 187 tackles (22.5 for loss), 12.5 sacks, six pass breakups and three forced fumbles over 37 games.

“This is just a step in the right direction,” Simpson said. “Just keep going, continue to get ready to go to practice Wednesday and get better. This is just the beginning. Just continue to keep going, growing every day, trusting the process, and every day, keep asking questions. Every time I ask a question, I learn something new, so that’s good for me as a rookie and I’m blessed to just be in a linebacker room like this.”