Packers: Grant can't wait to play
Associated Press
wsjsport@madison.com
GREEN BAY Its just a scrimmage, but Green Bay Packers running back Ryan Grant cant wait to play in front of a crowd at Lambeau Field Saturday night.
Grant spent much of last years training camp on the sidelines, first because of a contract dispute and then because of a hamstring injury. He went on to have a so-so season and the Packers running game suffered. [img_r]http://cdntn.madison.com/images/articles/wsj/2009/08/06/115594.jpg[/img_r]
A healthy Grant has a full camp to prepare this year. He hopes to recapture the form he showed during a breakout 2007 season and the scrimmage is a good place to start.
Im definitely playing hard, Grant said Thursday. Once they say live, youve got to go hard.
Grant arrived for the start of camp last weekend with a purpose. He is out to make amends for a 2008 season he called disappointing more because of the Packers swoon to a 6-10 record after reaching the NFC title game the previous year than because of his own struggles.
Grant ran wild in the second half of the 2007 schedule, finishing with 956 yards and eight touchdowns. He then rushed for 201 yards a Packers postseason record and three touchdowns in an NFC divisional playoff rout of the Seattle Seahawks.
But big runs were rare for Grant last year and he dropped from 5.1 yards per carry in 2007 to 3.9 yards last year. He became only the fourth player in club history to run for 1,200 yards (1,203), but the flair for breaking away from defenders was missing.
Of course, any injury is going to impact performance on the field. It did, said Grant, referring to the hamstring he injured on his second day of practice.
Grant, who signed a four-year contract, said he doesnt think about last year. And having him on the field from Day 1 of training camp this year has been a positive for the Packers.
I think Ryan has had a very solid camp, Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. Its really our first time going through a full camp with Ryan.
We get better every day. I talk about the philosophy to the offense, you need to be strong up the middle, and the only way to get strong up the middle is to make sure those guys practice every day. Im talking about the center, two guards, the quarterback and the halfback.
Grant is optimistic the big gains will be more the norm than the exception this season. Before reporting for camp, he spent a week and a half in Florida working out with a group of NFL players, including Packers safety Nick Collins.
The focus of those drills for Grant?
Explosion, he said.