When Browns wide receiver Jakeem Grant recalls how his season ended before it even started last year, the playback is vivid in his mind.
"Normal day. I felt great that day, by the way. Nothing was bothering me, anything. And so I asked Coach [Kevin Stefanski], 'Can I get a one-on-one rep?'" Grant said. "I had an inside go and I was against A.J. Green. Gave him a release and we were about even, and Deshaun [Watson] threw a back shoulder—and as soon as I stepped backward, I felt my Achilles pop."
Grant laid on the grass, grabbing at his ankle, writhing in pain. A hush fell over the fields as trainers tended to Grant, with the sound of camera clicks the only thing in the air for a few moments.
Browns trainers helped Grant onto a cart and took him off the field for further evaluation, but Grant already knew exactly what was wrong.
"The trainers came over and I was like, 'It's my Achilles.' They were like, 'Are you sure?' I was like, 'I know. I know for a fact it was my Achilles,'" he said. "All the coaches were. They were just upset."
Grant, a new addition for the 2022 season, was poised to take over a return game in desperate need of a boost. His speed and agility paired with the efforts to bolster the special teams unit came with so much promise. He had just spoken to the media the day before about the kind of impact he wanted to have, not just as a return specialist, but as a wide receiver.
Instead, Grant had suffered a torn Achilles tendon, just a few weeks before the Browns kicked off the season.
Disappointment was inevitable, for Grant and for the organization that had been anticipating Grant's impact. But Grant also recalls the immediate support he received after suffering the injury.
"As soon as that happened, I was in a training room. Kevin came to me, and I remember this like it was yesterday, he came to me and said, 'No one is going to expect that you can come back from this, but I believe in you and I know you can.' And so that lit a fire in me," Grant said.
Grant's first reaction was to ask how soon he could have surgery to repair the injury. Then his mind went to what he was going to need to do in order to recover and be back on the field as soon as possible.
The process wasn't easy for the receiver. Long stretches of tedious workouts that didn't always yield noticeable results took a toll on Grant's mental. But as someone who has always had a goal to prove people wrong, he refused to give up.
The support of his teammates and coaches extended outside of the building as well. As Grant would use his scooter to get around the city he now called home, he remembers being showered with well wishes from Browns fans who hadn't gotten to see him play but were full of love and support just the same.
"That's another thing that lit a fire up under me because even when I was hurting and I was scooter-ing around the community outside and stuff like that, people came up to me like, 'Aren't you Jakeem Grant,' and they were like, 'Man, I'm so sorry that you got hurt. I know that you're going to come back,'" he said. "And that support system right there is enough to make a guy train harder and just want to get back because all of that support and all of that love and I haven't even been here in like a year yet? And I'm getting that love for them? It just makes me want to go in and grind as hard as I can."
Grant's physical therapy eventually increased. After months of being unable to put any weight on his foot, he was out of the boot and off of the crutches. Then he was walking. Increase that to a jog on the treadmill. Soon enough, Grant was sprinting, leaping—and playing football again.
Since the Browns returned to workouts—in the spring at OTAs and minicamp to now at training camp—Grant has been easing back into the mix.
His coaches, including new special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone, rave about how good he's looked as he ramps up the workload.
"He looks good. He does. He looks really good," Ventrone said of Grant. "He looks explosive. Yeah, he does. And, like I said, once we get going into the team setting, I think we'll be able to identify and evaluate it further. But I think he's done a good job to this point for sure."
As for Grant, he says coaches have told him he looks to be 100%. Still, he feels about 85% right now and getting better every day. He feels that's more than enough to show off his dominance in the return game, and he's excited to do just that.
"I'm expecting a lot out of this year," Grant said. "Losing that year, people forget who you were and this league is about 'What have you done for me lately?' And so I have to come back and take over the return game and let them know that I'm the best returner in the league, and also continue to develop that offensive role and let people know that I'm a receiver and a returner. And so just being able to pull double duty and let people know that I can take over the game or both and both aspects," Grant said.
And when asked if he thinks that he'll be ready to be the Browns starting returner and finally take his first snaps in orange and brown this year, Grant had a very clear and confident answer.
"Absolutely. 100%, 100%. I let coaches know that I'm able and I'm ready to go," Grant said. "I'm just ready to get back."
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