Electric playmaker

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This article was published 08/08/2022 (1368 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Janarion Grant is a soft-spoken man. But his performance on Thursday is a hardened memory that etched his name in Bombers’ history.

In the fourth quarter of a hotly contested one-score game against the Montreal Alouettes, the 5-10 160-pound return man fielded a high-arching punt at his own 53-yard line then planted his right foot in the turf.

A crease developed in the heart of the coverage and Grant was off to the races. In a flash, the electrifying speedster took the punt back 57-yards for a touchdown to open the floodgates for the Blue and Gold, who would pour on another 15 points in the final quarter.

“I saw everybody to the right overplaying it, and I knew I would have some type of room in the middle. Once I saw that opening, I just had to take it,” Grant said.

The return was a chunk of Grant’s 207 all-purpose yards on the night and his second major on the season. The house call was also the sixth punt/kick he returned for a touchdown in his career, a historic feat as Grant tied former all-star return-man, Keith Stokes, for the most kick/punt returns in a career in Bombers’ history.

Grant has returned kicks at an uber-efficient rate since arriving in Winnipeg. His six majors have come in 26 games.

His abilities, while sure to keep fans, players and coaches on the edge of their seats, is hardly surprising at this point for head coach Mike O’Shea, who remembers what drew him and his staff to Grant in 2019.

“Electric. Playmaker. Get the ball in his hands and see what he can do. He’s certainly evolved a lot. He has a much greater understanding of the offence and can play multiple positions. You saw what he did in the return game. He broke a nice one. It seemed like it was pretty quick,” O’Shea told reporters after practice on Monday.

The historic moment wasn’t far removed from one of the lowest points in Grant’s career.

After scorching collegiate football for Rutgers University, the jitterbug fulfilled his hopes of making it to the NFL when he signed as an undrafted free agent with the Baltimore Ravens in May 2018.

Four months later, after making the Ravens’ final roster out of training camp as the primary returner, Grant was cut, shattering his dreams.

To make matters worse, no other team wanted to give him a chance.

“Heartbroken,” Grant quickly recalled.

“That’s what I wanted to do – NFL. But, you know, it happens to people, you just gotta keep on your grind, keep going each and every day and don’t let that get you down.”

Grant did just that during almost one year away from football, as the Florida native trained in the shadows while he waited for another team to come knocking.

That knock came from the Great White North in July 2019, when the Hamilton Tiger-Cats invited him to camp. Shortly after, Grant found himself in the Blue and Gold, a place he quickly proved he belonged, when he returned two kicks for touchdowns in his CFL debut.

“It was amazing. It was a blessing. Nobody wants to sit at home and not do nothing. I was ready to go. I told them that I’m just thankful that they picked me up.”

Fast forward three years, Grant has engraved his name alongside the Bombers’ greats. O’Shea has dealt with a great returner or two in his time, and his current returner has the knack.

“I think the really good ones, they have zero fear. It doesn’t even dawn on them that they’re running as hard and as fast as they can into a storm, a mass of humanity,” he said with a smile. “It doesn’t even register for those guys … That’s why not everybody can do it.”

For Grant, the process doesn’t change. And he’ll continue to repeat the same three steps in his head before every kick:

“Catch the ball, secure the ball, and just let my legs do the work.”

jfreysam@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jfreysam