Ryan Grant

Texans Work Out Prosise, Halapio, Others

The Texans are looking into some veteran free agents. Running back C.J. Prosise, wide receiver Ryan Grant, quarterback Cody Kessler and center Jon Halapio were among the players who participated in a Texans workout Wednesday.

This marks Prosise’s second August workout; he auditioned for the Lions nearly two weeks ago. The former Seahawks running back showed promise as a rookie and remained with the team throughout his four-year rookie contract, but the former third-round pick could never carve out a consistent role.

Now 30, Grant has bounced around since his Washington run ended. The nixed Ravens agreement in 2018 ended up routing him to the Colts, with whom he saw his last significant game action. Grant caught 35 passes for 334 yards in 2018. The Texans have a veteran-heavy receiving corps — headlined by the Will FullerBrandin CooksRandall CobbKenny Stills quartet — but are down Keke Coutee at the moment. The third-year wideout is batting a foot stress fracture.

The Patriots carried Kessler for part of last season but released him in April. He has not seen game action since starting four games for the 2018 Jaguars.

Halapio brings the most recent starting experience, having been the Giants’ starting center for 15 games in 2019. He was rumored as a player who could return to the Giants, but nothing has emerged on that front in a bit. The Giants non-tendered him as an RFA in March. Halapio, 29, entered the past two seasons as New York’s starting center, but a broken leg ended his 2018 slate early and an Achilles’ tendon tear knocked him out of a Week 17 game last season.

Packers Sign WR Ryan Grant

The Packers have signed veteran wide receiver Ryan Grant, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. To make room, they waived running back Tra Carson

Grant, 29 in December, caught just four passes for just 14 yards with Oakland this season. However, he snagged 35 passes for 334 yards with the Colts in 2018. The Raiders released Grant in late September and he worked out for the Patriots and Vikings before landing in Green Bay.

Carson, 27 next week, was promoted from the taxi squad just recently. He saw a grand total of six carries and rushed for just 14 yards with the Packers.

After edging out the Lions on Monday night, the Packers will face the Raiders – Grant’s former team – on Sunday afternoon.

Packers Work Out Five Players

The Packers were busy today, as ESPN’s Field Yates reports (via Twitter) that the team worked out five players. The group of auditionees included wide receivers Ryan Grant and T.J. Jones, quarterback Tyree Jackson, running back Roc Thomas, and defensive tackle Eddie Vanderdoes.

It’s been a busy few days for Grant and Jones, as the two wideouts worked out for the Vikings on Friday. The 28-year-old Grant caught four passes for just 14 yards with Oakland this season, although he did snag 35 passes for 334 yards with the Colts in 2018. Jones has 67 career receptions in 45 games, and he also has some experience returning kicks and punts. He had three receptions for 38 yards and one score in three games with the Giants this season.

Vanderdoes, a 2017 third-round pick by the Raiders, had a solid rookie season, compiling 18 tackles in 16 games (13 starts). He tore his ACL at the end of that season, and he wasn’t activated from the PUP during the 2018 campaign. Vanderdoes landed on IR following this year’s preseason, and he was cut by the organization earlier this week.

Thomas, 24, appeared in five games as a rookie for the Vikings last season, compiling 51 total yards on offense. Jackson was an undrafted free agent out of Buffalo in this past year’s draft. He spent the preseason with the Bills.

Vikings Work Out WRs Bennie Fowler, Ryan Grant

While the Vikings reportedly won’t be trading any of their receiver depth, that didn’t stop the coaching staff from auditioning some wideouts yesterday. ESPN’s Courtney Cronin reports (via Twitter) that Minnesota worked out several wide receivers on Friday, including Bennie Fowler, T.J. Jones, and Ryan Grant.

The Giants let go of both Fowler and Jones earlier this week after the duo had combined for only 15 receptions through four games. Most of those catches came via the 28-year-old Fowler, who had spent the past year-plus with the Giants. This is the first reported workout for Fowler. Jones, 27, was a sixth-round pick by the Lions back in 2014. After being cut by the Giants at the end of the preseason, he re-signed with the team in mid-September. Jones has 67 career receptions in 45 games, and he also has some experience returning kicks and punts.

The Raiders released Grant in late September, and he’s since had one workout with the Patriots. The 28-year-old caught four passes for just 14 yards with Oakland this season, although he did snag 35 passes for 334 yards with the Colts in 2018.

This week’s drama out of Minnesota was focused on receiver Stefon Diggs, who is reportedly at odds with the organization. While Minnesota reportedly doesn’t have any plans to trade the star wideout, Diggs said the other day that there was “truth to all rumors.” Diggs might not be the only frustrated wide receiver in Minnesota; Adam Thielen recently complained about the one-dimensional nature of the Vikings offense, prompting quarterback Kirk Cousins to apologize.

Patriots Work Out WR Ryan Grant

After the Raiders broke up their seven-wide receiver contingent by releasing Ryan Grant, the sixth-year pass catcher headed east for a workout. The Patriots auditioned Grant on Thursday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.

Grant caught four passes for just 14 yards as a Raider this season. He snagged 35 passes for 334 yards with the Colts in 2018, that coming after his lucrative Ravens deal fell through.

Prior to his stays in Indianapolis and Oakland, Grant was a four-year contributor in Washington. Though, he was only a regular in two of those seasons. The most notable Grant slate came in his 2017 contract year, when the post-DeSean Jackson/Pierre Garcon Redskins deployed him as a 10-game starter. He posted a career-high 573 receiving yards that season.

The Patriots have signed (and cut or traded) numerous veteran wideouts over the past two years. They have six receivers on their active roster, though Matthew Slater operates almost entirely as a special-teamer.

Raiders Release Ryan Grant

Ryan Grant‘s time in Oakland is over. The Raiders are releasing the veteran receiver, according to a tweet from Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area. In a follow-up tweet, Bair notes the team is promoting linebacker Justin Phillips from the practice squad to take his place on the roster.

It’s been a tumultuous past couple of seasons for Grant, who was originally drafted by the Redskins in the fifth-round back in 2014. He made a name for himself in Washington and was a favorite of head coach Jay Gruden, racking up 573 yards and four touchdowns in 2017. The strong season landed him a four-year, $29MM deal from the Ravens with a whopping $14.5MM in guaranteed money in free agency. The amount Baltimore gave him attracted a lot of criticism, and the next day they failed his physical and voided the deal.

Grant ended up signing a one-year, $5MM deal with the Colts, and spent last year in Indy. He didn’t play a huge role, catching 35 passes for 334 yards. He signed with Oakland this offseason, and he had nine targets in the team’s first two games. He quickly fell out of favor and was a healthy scratch this past week, so the writing was on the wall.

With promising rookie Hunter Renfrow in the slot, there wasn’t much of a need for Grant’s services anymore. Fortunately for Grant as a vested veteran his salary became guaranteed Week 1, so he’ll collect $1MM from Oakland. He should be able to latch on with a team in need of receiving help at some point. Phillips is an undrafted rookie from Oklahoma State.

Raiders Notes: Brown, Peterman, Good

We’ve got a new twist in the seemingly never-ending Antonio Brown saga. The last we had heard, the NFL had given the Raiders receiver the go-ahead to find a helmet of his usual model that was less than ten years old. The league had told him he would be able to play in it if he could find one less than ten years old, but they apparently changed course and told him the new helmet would still need to be tested, a source told Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com. Brown was able to find “several” of the Schutt AiR Advantage helmets made in the last ten years, but “earlier today, Brown was informed that the helmet failed the test,” Florio writes.

Brown has already reported back to the Raiders, so hopefully this doesn’t cause too much new drama. He had appeared to have gotten over the helmet issue, before this potential loophole came to light. Unfortunately, this doesn’t appear to be the final word on the helmet. The same source told Florio that “we haven’t heard the last of Brown on this issue,” so we should all buckle up. It’s hard to see what his next move would be, although he apparently has at least one more trick up his sleeve. We’ll keep you posted when we find out what it is.

Here’s more from Oakland:

  • Speaking of Brown, he at least seems to be headed in the right direction health-wise. Brown appears to be almost over his foot issue, and Raiders coach Jon Gruden said “I think so, yeah,” when asked earlier today if Brown would be a full participant in practice soon, per Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com. Gruden added that “he took all the reps today in our walkthrough.” Raiders quarterback Derek Carr said “you can tell Antonio’s been studying because he came out and didn’t miss a beat,” and that Brown “was a part of everything we did today.” While the helmet issue doesn’t seem to be going away, it looks like Brown’s frostbitten feet won’t be a story moving forward.
  • There’s been a lot of talk about Oakland’s backup quarterbacks this offseason, mostly due to the infamy of Nathan Peterman. Gruden caused quite the uproar a few weeks ago when he heaped praise on Peterman, leading many to believe he had a legitimate shot to become Carr’s primary clipboard holder. That being said, Vic Tafur of The Athletic predicts he’ll end up getting cut in his new 53-man roster projection. Mike Glennon has been impressive during the preseason, so this isn’t too surprising. There’s also a chance the Raiders decide to keep three quarterbacks because of Gruden’s affinity for Peterman. Notably, Tafur also projects veteran receiver Ryan Grant and defensive tackle Justin Ellis, who just got a $15MM extension last offseason, to miss the cut.
  • More good injury news for the Raiders, as guard Denzelle Good has been activated off the PUP list and will return to practice, Tafur tweets. “That’s huge for us,” Gruden said. He’s not wrong, as the Raiders are very thin at guard at the moment. Gabe Jackson is currently sidelined with a knee injury and Richie Incognito is suspended for the first two games of the season, so Oakland will be without both of their starting guards in Week 1. Good started three games at guard for the Raiders last season after being claimed off waivers from the Colts. He’ll now presumably join the competition to fill in for Jackson and Incognito. The Raiders are also said to be exploring the trade market for veteran guards.

Extra Points: Grant, Ravens, 49ers, AAF

Receiver Ryan Grant was involved in one of the more bizarre situations of last offseason. The former Redskins receiver looked like he was about to cash in big time, and signed a four-year, $29MM contract with $14.5MM guaranteed with the Ravens. But soon after, the Ravens slapped him with a failed physical designation and voided the contract, making him a free agent again. He ended up settling for a one-year, $5MM deal with the Colts. Now he’s on to a new team, signing a one-year, $2.5MM deal with the Raiders earlier this week. In a recent interview with Sirius XM, Grant dished on what happened with Baltimore and finally explained all the details.

Grant said the Ravens just got cold feet and that the injury that made him fail the physical wasn’t anything serious, just a “mild ankle sprain,” as he put it. Even though he lost out on a significant amount of money, Grant isn’t bitter about it and said he’s genuinely happy to be in Oakland. “I feel like, had I signed with the Ravens, they probably would have, you know, did some other shady stuff to get me traded or released or something like this. So I’m thankful that they did what they did,” Grant explained. “I’m happy where I am now. Super excited to be a part of the Raiders organization. It’s the spirit and the culture of the team. And it just feels like I’ve been drafted all over again. I’m just so ecstatic,” he continued.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • With Jimmy Garoppolo set to return from his ACL tear next season, the 49ers suddenly have a surplus at quarterback. Both C.J. Beathard and Nick Mullens are on the roster, and both have at the very least looked like above average backups during their time on the field. Beathard is a 2017 third round pick from Iowa who has started games in both of his first two seasons, and Mullens is a 2017 UDFA from Southern Miss who impressed when he was suddenly thrust into the starting role last season. Both are on cheap rookie deals, and there’s been a lot of speculation San Francisco could look to trade one of them. However, Matt Maioccio of NBC Sports thinks the 49ers will end up keeping all three signal-callers next season. Maioccio also writes it’s “difficult to believe that either has significant trade value around the NFL,” which is a fair point. Both Beathard and Garoppolo have suffered numerous injuries during their brief careers, so it makes sense why they’d want the depth.
  • Tom Dundon, the owner of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes and the lead investor in the AAF, made the call to shutdown the upstart league largely because they were unable to negotiate an agreement with the NFLPA. Dundon wanted practice squad and other bottom of the roster players to be allowed to play in the AAF, but a deal couldn’t be struck in time. Dundon has sought to cast blame for the league’s demise on the NFLPA, but Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com argues the union doesn’t deserve any of the blame. Florio casts Dundon’s case as a “flawed argument,” and breaks down why practice squad players wouldn’t have suddenly saved the league. Dundon essentially came in out of nowhere and tried to strong-arm the union, so it’s hard to disagree with Florio here.

Raiders Sign WR Ryan Grant

The Raiders made another addition to their receiving corps on Wednesday, agreeing to a deal with Ryan Grant. It’s a one-year deal worth up to $2.5MM, tweets Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review Journal.

Grant will join Antonio Brown, Tyrell Williams and J.J. Nelson as new pass-catching cogs in Oakland. The Raiders were interested in Grant last offseason, but he ended up signing a one-year deal with the Colts.

Only winding up in Indianapolis because his four-year, $29MM Baltimore deal fell through, with the Ravens soon after adding then-recent Raiders cut Michael Crabtree, Grant did visit Oakland last year in between his Ravens and Colts agreements. He’ll now join a Raiders wideout group that will look almost entirely different from its 2018 version.

Seth Roberts is the only notable player left from the Reggie McKenzie era’s receiving arsenals, and the longtime Raider slot target is no lock to be on the team come September. Jon Gruden‘s team cut Crabtree last year, doing so before trading Amari Cooper. The Raiders released Jordy Nelson, who has since retired, earlier this offseason.

With the Colts, Grant caught 35 passes for 334 yards and one touchdown. He attracted more interest following a 45-reception, 573-yard, four-TD season with the Redskins in 2017. But after a failed physical with the Ravens, Grant signed a one-year, $5MM deal with the Colts. It’s unlikely this Raiders pact is worth more than that.

Colts’ Ryan Grant, Tyquan Lewis Out Vs. Chiefs

Snow might be on the field when the Colts take on the Chiefs in Kansas City on Saturday. Indianapolis’ Ryan Grant and Tyquan Lewis, however, will not. The two players have been ruled out for the AFC Divisional Round matchup, Andrew Walker of the team’s website writes

Both players missed the Colts’ Wild Card matchup with Houston, during which Indy cruised to a 21-7 victory. Grant has been sidelined with a nagging toe injury, and Lewis suffered a knee injury in the team’s Week 17 contest vs. Tennessee.

An offseason signing from Washington, Grant is a solid slot receiver who surely would’ve seen plenty of action in an expected high-scoring affair vs. Kansas City. In 14 games with Indy in 2018, Grant has tallied 35 receptions.

A second-round selection out of Ohio State, Lewis has carved out a sizable role on the Colts defensive line down the stretch. Making his debut in Week 10, the defensive end made six starts in the team’s final eight games and delivered two sacks.

Needing to put up points against the high-flying Chiefs and get pressure on Patrick Mahomes, the pair of injuries could play a big role in the Saturday tilt.