Ryan Grant could make his comeback with the Detroit Lions.
Written by Adrian Gregory Glover // May 4, 2012 // News, NFL // No comments
Two years ago at this time it seemed unthinkable that RB Ryan Grant would be having a hard time finding work.
The free agency bonanza came and went. The draft festivities came and went. Still Grant, who at the start of the 2010 season as a Green Bay Packer was one of the most coveted runners in the game, is pounding the pavement.
In the first game of the 2010 season, he tore a ligament in his right ankle. Everything after that has not been the same as it was beforehand.
Grant came back in 2011 but he looked sluggish and a hardly even a sliver of his former self.
There is a reason why NFL personnel and analysts scrunch their faces up when players sustain certain injuries.
ACL, MCLs and any type of ligament damage signals a long road back to peak performance.
Players can return to action typically within 9-12 months but they are rarely the same initially.
More times than not, with the type of injury that Grant sustained it can be 18-24 months before a running back can be truly 100%.
It’s the return of the burst that sends them through open gaps with power. This is where you witness the acceleration that pushes them into the open field and away from defenders with ease.
By this timetable Grant should be primed for a comeback.
The Packers obviously don’t feel this way. According to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, there has been “no dialogue” between Grant and the Packers.
At this stage of the game it’s safe to officially say that he won’t be doing the Lambeau Leap any time soon.
Grant has flirted with the Patriots and he could end up there. But Detroit seems to be a likely landing spot for him.
The Lions have a hard time keeping runners healthy. If I were Ryan Grant and I signed with the Lions after my upcoming visit next week, I would watch out for errant banana peels, black cats and broken mirrors.
In seriousness, Grant will get a chance somewhere and that somewhere will most likely be Detroit if all goes well.
But who ever thought it would take Ryan Grant this long to get a gig?
