Tag: Ryan Griffin

Former Bucs QB playing pro football in Italy before joining Bears coaching staff

Before he trades in his cleats for a whistle, Ryan Griffin is getting a few more snaps in overseas

A longtime backup quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Ryan Griffin is set to join the Chicago Bears coaching staff for the 2024 season, but he’s not hanging up his cleats just yet.

It looks like Griffin is getting a few more snaps of pro football in as a player before transitioning to the coaching life, and he’s doing it across the pond.

Griffin is playing quarterback for the Skorpions Varese of the Italian Football League, and he’s making the most of his opportunity to continue to playing the game instead of coaching it.

Here’s the video evidence, as Griffin gets his team in the end zone:

Good luck to Ryan on the field in Italy, as well as whenever he takes up a headset this fall in Chicago.

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Former Bucs QB playing pro football in Italy before joining Bears coaching staff

Before he trades in his cleats for a whistle, Ryan Griffin is getting a few more snaps in overseas

A longtime backup quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Ryan Griffin is set to join the Chicago Bears coaching staff for the 2024 season, but he’s not hanging up his cleats just yet.

It looks like Griffin is getting a few more snaps of pro football in as a player before transitioning to the coaching life, and he’s doing it across the pond.

Griffin is playing quarterback for the Skorpions Varese of the Italian Football League, and he’s making the most of his opportunity to continue to playing the game instead of coaching it.

Here’s the video evidence, as Griffin gets his team in the end zone:

Good luck to Ryan on the field in Italy, as well as whenever he takes up a headset this fall in Chicago.

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Former Bucs QB Ryan Griffin lands NFL coaching job in NFC North

Griffin will be back on an NFL sideline in 2024, but he won’t be wearing pads this time around.

Former Bucs quarterback Ryan Griffin is back in the NFL — he just won’t be putting on his helmet.

The former Bucs quarterback hasn’t played an NFL snap since 2022, but he’s set to rejoin the fold as a coach. The Chicago Bears announced two new coaching hires, and Griffin was one of them, as he’s set to serve as an assistant working with quarterbacks and receivers.

Griffin was often Tampa Bay’s second or third-string quarterback. He only ever threw four passes in his career, completing two of them for 18 total yards. He had a long career with the Bucs, though, playing for the team from 2015-22. He spent a total of nine years in the NFL, playing for both the Bucs and the New Orleans Saints.

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10 free agent tight ends the New Orleans Saints should consider

The New Orleans Saints could use a blocking tight end after they traded Adam Trautman. Here are 10 free agents who could help the team:

The New Orleans Saints could use a blocking tight end after they traded Adam Trautman during the NFL draft — Juwan Johnson has developed into a competent blocker but he’s at his best running routes, catching passes, and scoring touchdowns. And he should benefit in that department with Derek Carr throwing to him. But someone needs to pick up the 519 snaps Trautman played last year.

Maybe one of the backups impresses this summer. Guys like Lucas Krull, Miller Forristall, and Joel Wilson have put up some good game tape in the past. But as a group they don’t inspire a ton of confidence, and this looks like a role the Saints could upgrade without investing a weighty contract. Taysom Hill isn’t a big part of this equation either given all of his other responsibilities on offense.

And the clock is ticking. Veteran tight ends like Eric Tomlinson (Houston Texans), Stephen Carlson (Chicago Bears), and even Dan Arnold (Philadelphia Eagles) have all been signed by other teams during the last week. The Saints do need to take action sooner or later. Here are 10 free agents who could help the team:

Bears 2023 NFL draft preview: Where does Chicago stand at TE?

Next up in our Bears NFL draft preview series is tight end, which already looks improved with Robert Tonyan joining Cole Kmet.

The Chicago Bears have had a busy offseason, working to improve the team following their historic 3-14 run during the 2022 season during general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus’ first year with the team. Now going into Year 2, Poles and Eberflus are working to get the Bears back to relevancy and build a foundation that will eventually lead to postseason success.

Following their free agency frenzy, the Bears are setting their sights towards the 2023 NFL draft, which is quickly approaching. After initially winding up with the No. 1 overall pick, the Bears moved down to No. 9 following a lucrative trade with the Carolina Panthers. They will look to shore up certain positions such as offensive tackle and defensive line that still have glaring holes.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going position by position to break down where Chicago stands entering the NFL draft. Up next is tight end, which has a pair of capable pass catchers at the top of the depth chart.

Bears 2023 free agency preview: Have we seen the last of Ryan Griffin?

Ryan Griffin was brought in to be Cole Kmet’s primary backup. But he didn’t make much of an impact in the passing game.

NFL free agency will be here before we know it, and the Chicago Bears have plenty of players set to hit the market. From key starters to valuable reserves, general manager Ryan Poles will have important decisions to make about who to bring back.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going through each individual player and breaking down their 2022 performance and whether or not they fit in the Bears’ long-term plans.

Next up is Ryan Griffin, who served as a valuable blocker but didn’t contribute much in the passing game as Cole Kmet’s backup.

8 pending free agents the Bears should let walk in 2023

Ahead of free agency, we’re looking at some in-house free agents the Bears shouldn’t re-sign in 2023.

The offseason is in full swing, and we’re just over a month away from the start of the new league year and free agency. And the Bears have some important decisions to make when it comes to in-house free agents.

The Bears are slated to have nearly $98.6 million in salary cap space — which is the most in the league (by a wide margin) — and there are plenty of holes to fill on the roster for new general manager Ryan Poles. Perhaps a few of those roster spots will be filled by some of Chicago’s in-house free agents, including some key contributors from last season that could be back as starters or reserves.

Ahead of free agency, we’re looking at some in-house free agents the Bears should let walk in 2023.

Bears 2022 TE review: Cole Kmet has breakout season

Our next Bears position review of 2022 looks at the tight ends, with Cole Kmet breaking out in a big way during his third season.

The Chicago Bears wrapped the 2022 season with a 3-14 record, which culminated in a 10-game losing streak. But there’s still reasons to be optimistic about the future, including a boatload of salary cap space, the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft and the emergence of quarterback Justin Fields.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going position by position through the 2022 Bears and grading every player. Rounding out the skill positions on offense is tight end, where Cole Kmet stood out in a big way.

WATCH: Justin Fields finds Ryan Griffin for Bears starting offense’s first TD of preseason

The Bears starting offense scored its first touchdown of the preseason – a Justin Fields to Ryan Griffin 22-yard score.

It was an ominous start for the Chicago Bears offense in their preseason finale against the Cleveland Browns, as they went three-and-out and totaled -1 yards on their opening possession.

There were shades of quarterback Justin Fields’ first NFL start from last season, which included a shaky performance by the offensive line.

But Chicago’s offense rebounded with an impressive seven-play, 80-yard scoring drive, where the offense found a nice rhythm and offensive coordinator Luke Getsy made some nice play calls.

Fields found tight end Ryan Griffin for a 22-yard touchdown, which marked the first touchdown for the Bears’ starting offense this preseason.

Fields went 5-of-5 for 55 yards and a touchdown on the drive.

The starting offense is expected to play for the first half against the Browns, where they’ll be looking to build on the momentum from that second drive.

The Bears lead the Browns 7-0 at the end of the first quarter.

Bear Necessities: Luke Getsy believes Cole Kmet can be ‘rock star’ on offense

The Bears are expecting big things from Cole Kmet in Year 3.

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The Chicago Bears are expecting big things from third-year tight end Cole Kmet, who’s finally looking for that breakout season.

Kmet is coming off an encouraging 2021 campaign where his production significantly increased in Year 2. Kmet ranked eighth in targets (93) among tight ends and had 60 receptions for 612 yards but no touchdowns.

But the scary thing is he’s only now starting to tap into his full potential under this new coaching staff, which has offensive coordinator Luke Getsy believing Kmet can be a “rock star” on offense.

“Cole is still young in his career and he has a lot of really cool tools,” Getsy said. “I think he’s starting to learn how to use them.

“You talk about a guy that we hope can do a lot of different things. We’ve lined him up wide. We’ve let him do some routes outside. We’ve brought him in tight. We’ve put him in-line and made him block the big boys up front, too, and I think the cool part about him is that he can do all of that stuff really well.

“He’s got to get better at just about everything because I think he’s on the brink right now of taking his game to another level. So I’m hopeful that by the time we get through this camp, he’s ready to be a rock star for us because we’re going to need him to be.”

Veteran Ryan Griffin believes Kmet has the tools to be a great tight end in the NFL. Now, it’s about putting it all together.

“He’s got all the tools in the bag. I’m excited to see what he can do too. The sky is the limit for him,” Griffin said. “He’s got all the tools. Lot of guys have tools in this league. It’s the want to, to get better, to learn, to take in knowledge and then put it out on the field. He’s shown he can do that. He will do that. That’s what makes me believe he’s going to be a great tight end in this league.”