Jacksonville Jaguars: Can Corey Grant hang on?

Jacksonville Jaguars kick returner Corey Grant can make the team based on special teams, but he must impress in the preseason.

Corey Grant only got to see the field for six games in 2015. He barely contributed on offense or special teams.

But that doesn’t tell the whole story for Grant.

Grant is a quick back for the Jacksonville Jaguars and can provide fast acceleration and decent change of direction, making for a tough combination for defenders and special teams players to stop.

His 27.5 yards per return were tops on the team in 2016. He unseated converted quarterbacks Denard Robinson (27 yards per return) and Nick Marshall (26.6 yards per return) but didn’t fully secure the position. He’ll be competing against both players for the kick returner role in 2016.

This preseason, look to see if Grant can hold on. Despite Marshall’s appeal as a raw player and Robinson’s collegiate love still lingering, Grant looks like the more decisive returner of the bunch. He makes his moves and gets the ball forward, providing some excitement at what he could do and also hinting that he knows to advance rather than get try and get tricky on his returns.

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With plenty of time left to impress the coaches, Grant needs to emphasize his role as a returner and stand out in that capacity. The competition behind

T.J. Yeldon

and

Chris Ivory

at running back is far stiffer than that at kick returner, making it more difficult for him to step out of the shadows and excel there in 2016.

Still, the quickness and decisiveness that Grant shows in his returns could also translate to running the ball, providing opportunities for the team to change it up behind the more bruising style of the two starters.

Keep an eye on Grant through the build up to the season to see what he can do and what he shows in development from last year.

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