Let's not overlook the fact that the guy may have been trying to simply so too much. To me that was an indictment of his play last year; especially on returns. He was trying to prove he belonged on every play he touched the ball rather than simply being himself. That can happen quite easily. Guy knows he is struggling in other areas and not seeing the field. The time he can see the field he is being asked to do something he hasn't regularly done. You think he was oblivious to the fact he wasn't seeing the field a whole lot? Honestly, most of the time we create our own demons in one form or another. And to me he created his by trying to do too much.
It's the same for anyone with a strong desire to prove that "I belong". Sometimes they try and do too much rather than just being themselves and allowing that to carry them. As with most things it is a double edged sword. That desire can hold you down if it is not managed correctly. Plays tend to happen on their own, not from trying to make one on every play. The opportunities come regardless so just let them happen. Forcing things never works.
Grant just has to be more sure handed, Landry also had problems at first, returning, same reason as Conuficus brought up, trying to do too much.
A few thoughts on Grant: 1. Regardless of what anyone thinks of Jakeem, until/unless the Dolphins sign an experienced and dependable punt returner, or until/unless they start loading punt return reps onto an inexperience player's plate during camp/preseason and he runs away with it literally and figuratively, Jakeem Grant's roster spot is safe. The only punt returners they've got on roster are Jakeem Grant and Jarvis Landry, and the Miami Dolphins will NOT head into the 2017 season with their #1 WR as the only guy they can count on to return punts. Won't happen. Don't even think it. 2. My biggest concern about Grant from 2016 was not the couple of muffed punts. It was his battling through nicks and injuries. He's tiny; no getting around that. Most wouldn't think a guy this small could physically survive the NFL without getting hurt. Anything he does that affirms the perception that he'll never durable...is bad. 3. If you account for the ones called back on questionable penalties, 23 punt returns for 245 yards and 2 TDs, not bad, eh? I can forgive 1 fumble lost for that kind of production. His 23 yards per kickoff return not bad either. Then you account for that 13 second, 19 yard kickoff return where he broke a bunch of tackles and had the Jets coverage team winded and (in the case of Calvin Pryor) limping off the sideline just before the re-kick that Kenyan Drake took 97 yards for a TD. Dude was a play maker as a return man. 4. I like what they talk about with him on the outside. Based on what I've seen of Tyreek Hill, that's how they use him a lot. He's legitimately one of the fastest men in football, so put him vertical and force a middle safety to try and keep a lid on him. Doubt he can do it. The other place where the Chiefs use Tyreek Hill is the backfield, and I hope Miami has some of that in store as well. 5. If you want to know why people are still high on Jakeem Grant even though he dropped (gasp) the only ball he was thrown in 2016, it's pretty easy to see: On that tape you will see him torching/embarrassing no fewer than FOUR actual NFL starters. Guys he will run into on Sunday. He torches Tre'Davious White to a cinder in single coverage for a long TD. He even torches White a second time when Tre'Davious was moved to a safety position specifically to try and keep a lid on Jakeem Grant deep. Grant still got a step on White even as Tre'Davious came over to take away the vertical. White of course is a 1st round pick. Grant also repeatedly torched Jalen Mills, especially deep, who is a starter for the Philadelphia Eagles. The fact he was having his way with Jalen Mills and Tre'Davious White in one-on-one is the reason LSU adapted their coverage to more shell looks, even going so far as to put Tre'Davious at safety on Jakeem's side of the field. Grant puts the moves on Jamal Adams at one point, although to be fair Adams generally was the only defender that came close to keeping up with Jakeem. And then there's the moment when Jakeem embarrassingly fakes Deion Jones out of his jock. Deion Jones of course was a finalist for Defensive Rookie of the Year. Jakeem Grant sees these guys on Sundays, and he has the ability to beat them. I'm not giving up on that because he dropped one pass.
I seem to be in the minority on this one. I think Grant is far closer to not making the team than he is to taking his game to the next level. as a First and foremost, he has to be able to catch punts. If he can't do this, we have nothing else to discuss. We played in a lot of close game last year. A muffed punt that give our opponent the ball in good field position will cost us games, period. If he keeps handing defenses opportunities, he will be handed his walking papers. But for the sake of argument, let's assume that he fixes the whole punt catching problem. I think he is playing the wrong position. I consider him more of a Darren Sproles than a WR. We should be using him primarily as a pass catching running back who occasionally runs outside of the tackles. In certain formations, we could motion him out to WR to create a mismatch. The entire goal of putting him on offense should to be to get him into space and let him turn on the jets.
