Tag: Garrett Griffin

Lions elevate S Brady Breeze and TE Garrett Griffin for Week 16

Lions elevate S Brady Breeze and TE Garrett Griffin for Week 16

The Detroit Lions, as they do most every week, bolstered the depth chart a little in advance of Saturday’s game. Safety Brady Breeze and tight end Garrett Griffin were elevated from the team’s practice squad to the active roster for Detroit’s Week 16 game against the Carolina Panthers.

The moves correlate to the Lions injury report. Safety DeShon Elliott and fullback Jason Cabinda have been ruled out for the game. Breeze can help provide depth in the secondary and on special teams, while Griffin is the closest thing to a fullback the Lions have to replace Cabinda.

The Lions departed early for Charlotte due to the inclement weather.

 

Presenting the Detroit Lions practice squad as of Week 6

Breaking down which players are on the Detroit Lions practice squad as of Week 6

The NFL’s Week 6 schedule sees the Detroit Lions idle on a bye week. The Sunday off came at an opportune time for coach Dan Campbell’s banged-up Lions team.

Even during the bye, the Lions have still tinkered with the roster. The ever-changing practice squad has seen a couple of new additions. It can be hard to keep track of just who is on Detroit’s practice squad, so here is the current iteration as Friday, October 14th.

Lions make 3 roster cuts, trim 2 TEs

None of the moves are a surprise as the team works to get to the 85-man limit by Tuesday afternoon

The Detroit Lions have made some roster moves in advance of Tuesday’s roster cutdown deadline. Three players are no longer with the team and will not travel to Indianapolis for this week’s joint practices or preseason game with the Colts.

The Lions waived TE Nolan Givan and OL Ryan McCollum and also released veteran tight end Garrett Griffin. Givan is an undrafted rookie, while McCollum is in his second year in Detroit. They are subject to waiver claims while Griffin, a vested veteran, is free to sign with any team as a free agent immediately.

None of the moves are surprising after watching the first three weeks of training camp and the first preseason game.

The Lions have until 4 p.m. on Tuesday to make two more moves to get to the 85-man limit. The roster currently stands at 87.

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Breaking down the Lions 1st unofficial depth chart

Breaking down the 1st unofficial Lions depth chart for the preseason opener against the Atlanta Falcons

One of the sure signs that football is back is the release of the first depth chart by the Detroit Lions. The team produced the unofficial depth chart in advance of Friday’s preseason opener in Ford Field against the Atlanta Falcons.

I cannot emphasize the “unofficial” part of the depth chart enough. This is more of a reflection on what the team’s PR department and media team sees than anything with real input from the coaches. That’s not just a Lions thing; every NFL team has someone other than actual coaches concoct these weekly depth charts.

Having said that, there’s not a lot of distortion from reality here. In fact, on offense there are only two minor listings that do not mesh with the player order at the positions in the last few days of practices:

  • At TE, Garrett Griffin and Shane Zylstra should be on the same line
  • WR Quintez Cephus is injured and Maurice Alexander has taken over his spot on the second-team at one of the three WR spots

Keep in mind FB Jason Cabinda remains on the PUP list. He would be listed as a starter at fullback, and the team doesn’t really have a second-team FB. Griffin has filled that role when called upon, which is why he belongs on a higher line than the third-string offense.

Defensively, there are a few points of note:

  • Julian Okwara and Levi Onwuzurike are both injured and are not expected to play
  • John Cominsky has played above both Bruce Hector and Eric Banks throughout training camp but is listed behind both
  • Rookie LB Malcolm Rodriguez has primarily been with the second-team defense and has taken a few first-team reps, but he’s listed with the fourth string.

It’s interesting that there is no differentiation between DE and DT. All the linemen are listed as DL, period. Given that several of the players (Aidan Hutchinson, Michael Brockers, Jashon Cornell, Cominsky) all play multiple positions regularly, it makes sense.

The return specialists do not list either Kalil Pimpleton or Maurice Alexander, but both have consistently repped ahead of Tom Kennedy in both punt and kick return drills. It would be stunning to see Amon-Ra St. Brown play on special teams in the preseason, too. But that reinforces why it’s an unofficial depth chart.

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Garrett Griffin: What the Lions are getting in their new TE

The Lions signed former Saints TE Garrett Griffin. What are they getting in their free agent tight end?

It’s been a selective offseason in free agency for the Detroit Lions. One of the two (so far) outside free agents signed by GM Brad Holmes is tight end Garrett Griffin, formerly of the New Orleans Saints.

The Lions signed Griffin to compete to be the primary blocking tight end. That’s been his primary role in his first five NFL years, all spent with the Saints.

What are the Lions getting in Griffin?

Griffin has played in 20 games since joining the Saints as an undrafted free agent from Air Force back in the 2017 season. He’s coming off his most extensive usage in the 2021 campaign, where he played 235 offensive snaps and started six games.

Griffin was used by the Saints almost exclusively as an inline blocking tight end. He does have decent hands, however; the 28-year-old caught all four passes thrown his way, netting 39 yards. All were of the dump-off and short-range variety.

Guys with that meager of production don’t last in the NFL for five years unless they can block. That’s where Griffin earns his money and why he held appeal for Detroit. He’s an adept lead blocker in the run game, good at engaging targets at the second level and creating a seal for the RB to read.

In my limited film study (4 games from 2021), I liked Griffin as a run blocker. He’s smart and quick, and he sustains the block well after initial contact. Griffin isn’t nearly as good as a pass protector, unfortunately. He overcommits on the first move and doesn’t have the athleticism to recover if he doesn’t win right away.

He does have some special teams experience and can also work out of the backfield as an H-back type of tight end. His route running consists of nothing more than safety valve work.

It’s a low-cost signing for Detroit that adds competition to a tight end room that is wide open outside of Pro Bowler T.J. Hockenson. Signing Griffin doesn’t eliminate any potential for the Lions to select a tight end in the later portion of the 2022 NFL draft. He figures to compete with Jared Pinkney, Brock Wright, Shane Zylstra and Matt Sokol for depth at TE.

Former Saints players say their goodbyes, thank fans after leaving in free agency

Former Saints players say their goodbyes, thank fans after leaving in free agency:

It hasn’t taken long for losses to pile up for the New Orleans Saints in free agency. Longtime starting free safety Marcus Williams was signed away by the Baltimore Ravens at the earliest opportunity, with reserves like running back Ty Montgomery (signed by the New England Patriots) and tight end Garrett Griffin (picked up by the Detroit Lions) heading out in the days that followed. And they were quick to thank Saints fans for the memories they made together.

New Orleans won a lot of football games with these guys on the team, and it’s clearly a part of their lives that they’ll cherish even after moving on. Williams and Montgomery each addressed the fanbase on Twitter and thanked them for the support over the years. Griffin, the Air Force Academy graduate has been away from social media fulfilling his annual military commitments, so he hasn’t had much opportunity to comment on his career change publicly. Here’s to their success in their new starts around the league.

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Saints free agent TE Garrett Griffin is signing with the Detroit Lions

Saints free agent TE Garrett Griffin is signing with the Detroit Lions, via @DillySanders:

Per the NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, former New Orleans Saints tight end Garrett Griffin is reuniting with his old position coach Dan Campbell, is signing with the Detroit Lions. Campbell has a history of signing his former Saints tight ends, as they were the team that signed Josh Hill before his retirement last year.

Griffin has just five career catches for 43 yards, but has excelled in his role as a depth player for the Saints since signing as an undrafted free agent in 2016. He’s a capable blocker and appeared in a career-high 13 games last season. It was recently reported by Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football that the Saints were not planning to pick up his restricted free agent tender, so the team was fine letting him leave in free agency.

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Report: Saints send Garrett Griffin to injured reserve, welcome back Adam Trautman

Report: Saints send Garrett Griffin to injured reserve, welcome back Adam Trautman

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The New Orleans Saints lost backup tight end Garrett Griffin for three weeks in sending him to the injured reserve list on Saturday, as first reported by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero and confirmed by the Times-Picayune | Advocate’s Luke Johnson. Pelissero added that the corresponding move is expected to be the activation of starting tight end Adam Trautman, who was designated to return from injured reserve himself earlier this week.

Griffin, 27, spent a couple years on the Saints practice squad after graduating from the United States Air Force Academy and receiving a service deferment to go pro before fulfilling his commission. He’s caught all 7 receptions thrown his way for 55 receiving yards in his NFL career, including a crucial touchdown catch in the 2018 NFC championship game. He played a career-high 235 snaps on offense and 154 reps on special teams before injuring his hamstring a week ago.

If he is able to return in time for Sunday’s kickoff with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, look for Trautman to split snaps with veteran tight end Nick Vannett, who has been a big part of the screen game since he made his own return from injured reserve about a month ago. The Saints signed Vannett envisioning a tandem with Trautman, and it sounds like we’re about to see that vision fulfilled.

Hopefully it eases the range of responsibilities Trautman struggled with prior to his injury. With Vannett unavailable he was seeing a higher workload than the Saints planned in his second year as a pro, and generally didn’t respond well. If he can focus on playing to his strengths while Vannett steps into other roles, it could benefit everyone.

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NFL Twitter in uproar over bogus, drive-killing blindside block penalty on Saints

NFL Twitter in uproar over bogus, drive-killing blindside block penalty on Saints

What in the world? NFL referee Brad Rogers and his crew spiked a critical New Orleans Saints possession to open the second half of their game against the Dallas Cowboys with a bogus foul for a blindside block on tight end Garrett Griffin, wiping out a first down version and moving the Saints offense back from their own 21 yard line to their own 10, facing a first down with 21 yards to go. They punted three plays later.

The reaction was immediate and furious: Griffin and his opponent, defensive back Jayron Kearse, were eye to eye with each other as he initiated the block and shoved Kearse to the ground to protect his quarterback. And that turned out to be a game-changing decision with Cowboys running back Tony Pollard scampering 58 yards for a touchdown run.

Sean Payton was still barking at Rogers and the other officials minutes later while fans crowding the Caesars Superdome chanted with gusto at the bad call. And responses on social media echoed the sentiment:

Veteran TE Nick Vannett activated from Saints injured reserve

Veteran TE Nick Vannett activated from Saints injured reserve

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Thursday didn’t bring only bad news for the New Orleans Saints, who activated tight end Nick Vannett from the injured reserve list. Vannett suffered a knee injury in the Saints’ final preseason game and was reportedly expected to miss two to four weeks — instead, he’s been unavailable for two and a half months.

But what’s important is that he brings some badly-needed experience at a position where it’s badly needed. Vannett was talked up as the Saints’ replacement for Josh Hill, handling a variety of blocking assignments while his fleeter-footed teammates Adam Trautman and Juwan Johnson focused on running routes and catching passes.

How the plan changes now will be interesting given Trautman’s poor performance as a pass-catcher and surprising competence as a blocker. Johnson was benched last week to make room for another special teams player but third-wheel Garrett Griffin didn’t see an accompanying workload increase while playing just 11 snaps against Trautman’s 67.

Vannett should be able to cut into that and help Trautman fit into more favorable situations. He was one of the team’s few free agent acquisitions this offseason and the team could really use a nice return on that investment given how badly other moves have panned out, like first-round rookie Payton Turner going to injured reserve.

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