Throughout the "NCIS" episode "The First Day," Jimmy Palmer tries hard to show his colleagues he's coping well with his wife's death, but it's obvious he's not. In the episode's opening, he explains his mother has moved in with him and his daughter, but he's having trouble sleeping, asking his friends for advice on a chiropractor and weighted blankets. Later, he asks his colleague, Dr. Mallard, for a video consult, even though Mallard points out Jimmy already knows the answer. At one point, he provides the team with a lead in their current case after reviewing the file — which isn't one of his duties, someone points out. Finally, Gibbs (played by Mark Harmon) confronts the medical examiner, forcing an emotional Jimmy to admit he's in denial about his grief. 

Dietzen told "ET" he wasn't surprised his character was selected to have experienced COVID-19 with such a loss. "I think that unfortunately in our country — and across the world I should say — that's been the case for a lot of folks who have dealt with COVID so closely," he said. He added that many frontline workers such as Jimmy had to deal with long working hours while also experiencing personal heartbreak. "And yet they're asked to just continue working because if they stop working, then we don't have our frontline there for us anymore."