So it turns out the Carolina Panthers nearly avoided their Great Return Man Drought of 2021 by nearly trading for one of the league’s, well, greatest return men.
On Tuesday, the Miami Dolphins traded receiver Jakeem Grant to the Chicago Bears in exchange for a 2023 sixth-round pick. But according to NFL Network reporter Cameron Wolfe, Grant was almost headed for Carolina back in the summer.
The Dolphins nearly traded Jakeem Grant to Carolina this summer but contract terms held it up. So instead they kept him on restructured contract and now he’s headed to Chicago.
Bears get one of NFL’s best returners in Grant and Dolphins can turn to Jaylen Waddle as a returner. https://t.co/HLSBOHt54h
— Cameron Wolfe (@CameronWolfe) October 5, 2021
The 5-foot-7, 171-pound wideout has made a living primarily off his special teams prowess. Over his six-year career, Grant has fielded 101 punts for an average of 9.7 yards per attempt with three touchdowns. He’s also taken back 89 kickoffs with a 24.8-yard average and two more scores.
As indicated by Wolfe, the Panthers apparently could not finalize the deal for Grant due to a holdup in contract terms. That, indirectly, resulted in a down-to-the-wire hunt for a returner, one that ended with Alex Erickson signing on for the job. Erickson has, thus far, returned nine punts for 72 yards.
Carolina did, however, get at least one swap through with Miami this offseason, having shipped away 2019 second-round pick Greg Little for a conditional 2022 seventh-round pick.
Scott “In on every deal” Fitterer is really earning his nickname.
