Grant likes fit better with Redskins
After being left without a team to play for during the first three weeks of the season, Ryan Grant received two contract offers within hours of each other on Tuesday.
Decisions, decisions.
Grant, who spent the last five years with the Green Bay Packers, had completed a workout for the Chicago Bears and was on his way to taking a physical when he received a phone call, and a contract offer from the Washington Redskins.
The Bears, meanwhile, decided they liked what they saw from Grant and called him shortly thereafter, letting him know they, too, would offer him a contract.
"I told the driver to turn around and take me to the airport," Grant said Wednesday. "I had to fly from O'Hare to here and got in at 12:15, 12:30 last night. Then got up, did physicals and took everything today."
In the Redskins, the 6-foot-1, 222-pound Grant found a team with a need for a running back in its zone-blocking scheme. Grant thrived in such a scheme in 2008 and 2009, rushing for more than 1,000 yards.
He played one game in 2010 when the Packers won the Super Bowl, but tore a ligament in his right ankle in the opener and was placed on injured reserve. In splitting carries with James Starks last season, Grant rushed for 559 yards and two touchdowns.
"You could see when he was at Green Bay -- you could see his running style," Redskins coach Mike Shanahan said. "I think he fits with what we do. You know, he's big and he's fast and he's got some experience. He's a very sharp kid. Picks things up pretty quickly, and at this time of year, you need guys that have a little bit of experience."
The Redskins had room for Grant after placing Roy Helu on injured reserve with turf toe in his left foot. Helu, Washington's leading rusher last season, needed nearly three months to recover after experiencing turf toe in his right foot in November.
He originally sustained turf toe in the first game against New Orleans and tried to play through it, but it compounded with an Achilles injury sustained in the preseason and the team decided to err on the side of caution.
"As early as it was this year, the damage would have been up there if I kept going," Helu said.
Rookie Alfred Morris, a sixth-round draft pick out of Florida Atlantic, has rushed for 263 yards, good for third in the league. Evan Royster, who sprained the PCL in his right knee against Cincinnati and is considered day-to-day, has 35 yards on five carries.
Grant doesn't know specifically how long it will take him to get back to football shape, but he's hoping for an immediate impact.
He's seen too many games on TV over the last three weeks to want anything else.
"I know Chicago, but at the end of the day, I feel like it was a better fit here," Grant said.
