Grant Finds His Way Back to NFL

The speedy wide receiver is getting another shot after missing the past two seasons with injuries.

Alain Poupart | Aug 10, 2024

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jakeem Grant (19) runs with the football during the first quarter of the game against the Buffalo Bills at Hard Rock Stadium in 2021. / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

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Miami Dolphins

Jakeem Grant has had his share of bad luck since leaving the Miami Dolphins, but the dynamic kick returner will get another shot.

Grant will be signing with the Atlanta Falcons, according to a report from NFL Network's Tom Pelissero on Saturday.

The signing comes right after the Falcons faced Grant's first NFL team, the Dolphins, in the preseason opener Friday night. Atlanta was in the market for a wide receiver after losing Rondale Moore to a season-ending knee injury in one of the joint practices with the Dolphins at the Baptist Health Training Complex.

Grant last played in the 2021 season and was an unrestricted free agent this offseason. He was a member of the Cleveland Browns the past two years but missed the entire 2022 season with a torn Achilles injury and the 2023 season with a torn patellar tendon, both occurring in the preseason.

GRANT'S GREAT RETURNING CAREER IN MIAMI

Grant played five-plus seasons with the Dolphins after they took him in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL draft, part of a great draft class that included Laremy Tunsil, Xavien Howard, and the recently retired Kenyan Drake.

During his time in Miami, Grant scored five touchdowns on kick returns, three on punts, and two on kickoffs. His best receiving season came in 2020 when he had 36 catches for 373 yards and four touchdowns.

Grant had a punt return and kickoff return for a touchdown in 2018.

Grant was named a second-team All-Pro returner in his final entire season with the Dolphins in 2020 and the following season when he split time between Miami and the Chicago Bears.

The Dolphins traded Grant to the Bears in 2021 for a 2023 sixth-round pick, which the Dolphins subsequently sent to the Kansas City Chiefs as one of the five draft picks as the return in the trade for Tyreek Hill.

Published Aug 10, 2024|Modified Aug 10, 2024

ALAIN POUPART

Alain Poupart is the publisher/editor of All Dolphins and co-host of the All Dolphins Podcast. Alain has covered the Miami Dolphins on a full-time basis since 1989 for various publications and media outlets, including Dolphin Digest, The Associated Press, the Dolphins team website, and the Fan Nation Network (part of Sports Illustrated). In addition to being a credentialed member of the Miami Dolphins press corps, Alain has covered three Super Bowls (for NFL.com, Football News and the Montreal Gazette), the annual NFL draft, the Senior Bowl, and the NFL Scouting Combine. During his almost 40 years in journalism, which began at the now-defunct Miami News, Alain has covered practically every sport at one time or another, from tennis to golf, baseball, basketball and everything in between. The career also included time as a copy editor, including work on several books such as "Still Perfect," an inside look at the Miami Dolphins' 1972 perfect season. A native of Montreal, Canada, whose first language is French, Alain grew up a huge hockey fan but soon developed a love for all sports, including NFL football. He has lived in South Florida since the 1980s.