Breakout season ahead? Browns' Jakeem Grant Sr. wants to prove he's more than a return man

BEREA — Jakeem Grant Sr. is ready to preach.

The 5-foot-6, 170-pound receiver/returner has played in the NFL for six seasons and been selected to one Pro Bowl. Three practices into his pro career in 2016, the Texas Tech product was nicknamed “Mighty Mouse” by the Miami Dolphins. Browns special teams coordinator Mike Priefer said he’d been trying for two years to get Grant to Cleveland before Grant signed a three-year deal that could be worth up to $13.8 million with incentives in March.

Through all that, Grant has not been able to shake the label that he’s only a return man. With no proven wide receivers behind new No. 1 Amari Cooper and a rash of injuries during training camp, Grant may finally get that chance.

“I always preach that I’m a receiver first before a returner, and I’m going to continue to preach that message, and I’m going to continue to work on that until I get that opportunity to have that breakout season,” Grant said Sunday.

“I feel like being my size, I automatically get pigeonholed as a returner. I don’t think nothing of it; I just let it to go the back of my mind and continue to work on my receiver game. And every opportunity I get, I capitalize on it.”

Grant has been reunited with pass game coordinator/receivers coach Chad O’Shea, the Dolphins' offensive coordinator in 2019. A sixth-round pick, Grant spent more than five seasons in Miami before he was traded to the Chicago Bears in October.

“With us being from the same organization there for a year, it gives me a great opportunity to play on offense, and also just my skill set and what I bring to the offense,” Grant said of O'Shea.

With day 10 of training camp Sunday, Grant said O’Shea has used him the same as before.

“I was on the outside, I was on the inside, so getting those mismatches on linebackers and things like that, using me in the quick game,” Grant said of their time in Miami. “Jet sweeps … some of the gadget stuff, and also just using me as a pure receiver and just getting those mismatches on the linebackers and nickel.”

With Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry no longer with the Browns, they acquired four-time Pro Bowler Cooper in a trade with the Dallas Cowboys in March. But the rest of the receiving corps – led by Donovan Peoples-Jones, Anthony Schwartz and draft picks David Bell and Michael Woods II – must still be sorted out.

That includes the slot, where the Browns used Landry, Rashard Higgins and Demetric Felton Jr. last season. Higgins signed with the Carolina Panthers as a free agent, and Landry with the New Orleans Saints after being released.

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said Grant must earn a role on offense, but Stefanski has picked O’Shea’s brain about Grant.

“Jakeem … just having been around him the last couple of months, just a really good person,” Stefanski said. “Practices hard. A great teammate. Works really hard. In the meeting room, takes great notes. Is an explosive player. I think the players get a kick out of him on these practice fields when he has the ball in his hands because his feet do move at a different speed than the rest of us.”

Grant described his style, which helps him avoid injury, as “be a jitterbug, man.”

“What I always pride myself on is you can’t hit what you can’t catch, so if they can’t catch me, they can’t hit me,” Grant said.

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Signed as a free agent in March, Grant has played in 81 career games and caught 100 passes (on 161 targets) for 1,140 yards and seven touchdowns. Of those 100, 67 have gone for first downs.

If Grant carves out a role on offense, Priefer won’t be upset.

“He's way too talented to be standing next to me all the time,” Priefer said. “I think he's a phenomenal returner. I don't think he takes the hits a lot of guys take because of his stature, but his quickness, his center of gravity, he's got great vision, he's got – Devin Hester, one of his strengths, he was the greatest of all time in my opinion – and he had that tremendous vision like great returners have.

"I think Jakeem has that vision, he understands the game, he understands situational football, and that's the element that he brings along with his athletic ability.”

Part of Stefanski’s reservations about using Grant on offense could be the fact that he’s carried the ball in his right arm his entire career. Priefer noticed and is trying to break him of that habit when he’s running to the left.

“I’m not going to lie, it’s been some ups and downs,” Grant said. “I love keeping it in my right hand because it just feels comfortable and the left hand it feels like I’m running slower, but in actuality I’m not. Coach Prief has done an awesome job, ‘Hey, left arm, left arm, left arm.’ If I put it in the right hand whenever I’m going to the left, he makes me do pushups.”

Asked how many he’s done so far, Grant said, “Ah, man, probably about 50.”

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But there is more to it than just keeping the ball from getting hit.

“We broke down film and he said I could have gained a lot more yards if I just utilized my stiff arm,” Grant said of Priefer. That’s why I say he’s awesome, he’s a phenomenal coach because no coach has ever told me that. Now when I go back and look at it, he’s absolutely right.”

The Browns haven’t had a return for a touchdown since 2015, when Travis Benjamin brought back a punt 78 yards against the Tennessee Titans when Johnny Manziel was the starting quarterback.

Grant aims to change that. He’s never gone a season without a touchdown, although that didn’t happen as a returner in 2017. That year, he came through with two receiving scores for the Dolphins.

“No pressure at all,” Grant said. “More of the reason I came here is because of how aggressive they are on punt returns. I think they only had five fair catches throughout the whole season. That’s what I love. I’m like a non-fair catch guy, so that’s more opportunities for me, and I’m looking to score multiple touchdowns in the return game.”

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Grant has averaged 10.3 yards on 119 career punt returns and 24.5 yards on 110 kickoff returns. Last season, the Browns tied for 26^th in the league in punt return average (7.2) and tied for 21^st in kickoff returns (20.7). Grant and Priefer hashed out how Grant could help the Browns improve there.

“Me and him got one-on-one and got a great understanding,” Grant said. “Now the sky’s the limit with us. I’ve got a great coach like coach Prief and we’re going to go and make history together.”

Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MRidenourABJ.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Jakeem Grant Sr. ready to reinvigorate Browns return game