As Janarion Grant caught Jose Maltos’ kickoff he was standing on his own seven-yard line. The hometown Montreal Alouettes had just scored a touchdown in the final minute of the first half to cut the Toronto Argonauts lead to just two points.
As the first year Argo caught the ball and headed up the left hashmark he realized something big was about to happen. Most of his teammates has drifted to the middle of the field, while some of the Alouette defenders stayed wide, making sure the speedster didn’t get to the outside.
He didn’t need to.
The Trilby, Florida native essentially ran in a straight line, untouched, before an Alouette defender dove for the returner 40 yards from where Grant started his journey.
The attempted tackler grabbed nothing but air as the Argo breezed by him. It was over when Grant saw teammate Jonathan Jones turning the last potential tackler into his own personal blocking sled. The final 55 yards would be easy, it was just a trio of Als proving they weren’t as fast as the man they were chasing.
The touchdown eviscerated any momentum the home side gained with its TD. It also surprised Grant that the route taken was unhindered by red jerseys.
“Most definitely,” Grant told Argonauts.ca. “I give that all to my guys (his blockers) just being out there and blocking for me, and me doing my job – just putting the team in a better position.”
Baseball players will often say that when they’re hitting the ball well it looks to be the size of a beach ball. With two return TDs in as many games, Grant says he’s feeling that way right now and even a small seam appears to be the size of a canyon.
“That hole can close pretty fast,” he was quick to point out. “This is a professional league, so once you see it you’ve definitely got to take it because you might not get that chance back. Every chance you get you’ve got to go out there with vision, speed, and just make sure you trust yourself and trust your guys.”
It’s almost like the Argos were gifted Grant. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers opted to not bring him back. Instead of panicking and rushing to sign a deal, he used the same traits he shows as a returner in his business acumen. He was patient, waited for an opportunity to present itself, then took advantage of the opening.
He didn’t sign with Toronto until May 28, just before the end of training camp. It was great news for special teams coordinator Mickey Donovan, who helped Javon Leake win last year’s Most Outstanding Special Teams Player.
Leake left for Edmonton via free agency, creating a rather large vacancy in the return game. Grant’s late addition meant Donovan had a different kind of back to scheme around.
How much did he have to change his playbook to accommodate his new weapon?
“Not much,” Donovan admitted to Argonauts.ca. “It’s more how we’re attacking our opponents in different ways and how he likes to attack. Not even talking to him, it’s more watching him and seeing how he reacts after the catch.”
Grant has an obvious cache of weapons at his disposal; he’s exceptionally fast, is incredibly shifty, and has tremendous vision. But when asked what he thought the returner’s biggest gift was, Donovan replied with none of the above.
“His ability to break tackles, even though he hasn’t had to do too much of that. His vision and seeing the blocks set up and still be able to go at a good pace is probably the biggest bonus about him. Where a lot of returners have to go a little slower at first to set the blocks up, he’s able to be at full stride and still get the reads right.”
The man himself pointed to another trait he’s been blessed with.
“Instinct,” said Grant. “When I catch it, I make sure I take a quick picture of the field and see where everybody is. I can take a couple steps to my right or to my left and they (players on the coverage team) flow that way and open that hole just a little bit more; then I know I’ve got a chance of hitting it and making a big gain.”
Whatever he’s doing has worked. He leads the CFL with an average of 16.9 yards per punt return, and 32.3 yards per kickoff return. He’s also scored two of the three touchdowns on returns in the league this year.
He’s got a chance to add to those totals on Saturday in his first taste of the Argo/Ticat rivalry when the two teams meet in Hamilton.