Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
‘Stronger,’ ‘faster,’ ‘better’
Grant determined to come back after foot injury ended ’18 early
Like most football players, Jakeem Grant was used to playing through pain. He’d done it in college at Texas Tech, done it through his first three seasons with the Dolphins.
But when he realized the foot injury he suffered last November during a loss to the Green Bay Packers was going to cut his season short, the speedy 5-foot-7 receiver acknowledged that he was more than a little disappointed. He felt like he wasn’t himself. And teammates — including good friend, fellow receiver and high-five celebration partner Albert Wilson — noticed.
“This was my first time being hurt, so [Wilson] could tell mentally I wasn’t myself. … I was always one of those guys that played through [being] hurt, pains, stuff like that. But this one, I couldn’t play through,” Grant said after he was a limited participant during the Dolphins’ organized team activities on Tuesday. “He was just like, ‘It’s nothing. It’s not serious, bro. You’re going to get through this and you’re going to come back stronger, faster and better than ever’ and I was like, ‘Man, it definitely doesn’t feel that way, not at the moment.’ ”
Things feel plenty better now. Though Grant said he wouldn’t describe himself as feeling 100 percent yet, the receiver did note on Tuesday that
he’s no longer in pain and his biggest challenge health-wise these days is dealing with some nagging stiffness. He joked he’s often pushing coaches and trainers to let him do more, but knows he has to be smart as he works his way back, especially if he wants to improve on the success he had last year.
Before his season ended, Grant had 21 catches for 268 yards and two touchdowns. As a specialist, he averaged 16.3 yards per punt return and 29.7 yards per kick return, a number which, at the time of his injury, led the NFL. He was also the only player in the league to return both a punt and a kickoff for a touchdown.
Grant — who is now in the final year of his rookie contract — said Tuesday he’s determined to improve on all those numbers and show first-year Dolphins coach Brian Flores and the rest of the staff that he’s worthy not only of increased playing time this season, but that he should be a part of Miami’s future moving forward.
“This is bag (money) season for me. I feel like, last year, I kind of made a big name for myself in the return game and I feel like I’m going to continue to push that name for me in the return game. I want to be the best returner in the league and I want to be one of the top receivers in the league,” Grant said. “I’m going to continue to go out there and play as [if ] I’m the best at everything.
“I’m hungry because last year was cut short for me. I don’t have no regrets about it. I feel like that was an injury waiting to happen and I feel like I’m glad it happened because now, I’m going to come back stronger and faster and better. This season is very important to me. We have a new coaching staff, great coaching staff, new guys and I just want to set a tone just for the whole team and show them that, you know, they can depend on me and I’m one of the guys they can have for long term.”
On that front, Grant noted he’s been trying to take advantage of every opportunity he’s been given during OTAs. He’s embraced Flores’ mantra that the Dolphins should be the best conditioned team in the NFL. He’s made it a point to listen to what quarterbacks Ryan Fitzpatrick and Josh Rosen have said during team meetings. And on Tuesday, he said he was ready to do his part to help prove the Dolphins’ critics wrong, including ESPN analyst Mike Clay, who last week predicted the Dolphins would lose every game this season.
“I love being the underdog. I’ve been the underdog my whole life. So, whenever we go into a place, or into a game, expected to lose and we win, it makes it that much sweeter,” Grant said. “And so, I’m happy that they’re counting us out. Because once we win, that smack in the face is just an unbelievable feeling.”