A familiar face was back on the practice field as Brent Grimes returned to full pads for the first time in over week. Grimes hit the ground running with an interception in 7-on-7 drills upon his return.

“For my sanity I just need to move around,” Grimes said. “I’m not good at sitting still for real long. It’s good to come out and work with the guys and be part of the team in that aspect. To get out and put the football work in with the team, I had fun and it makes my day much better.”

Bucs CB Brent Grimes Photo by – Cliff Welch/PR

Spending a lot of time on the sideline resting his injury has let Grimes see a lot of new pieces on this team from a different viewpoint. Being in the league for over a decade means it shouldn’t take him as much to be up to speed like others. Grimes has his routine down and says it doesn’t really need to change his mentality or aggressiveness at all. Not even with the new and – hopefully – improved defensive line.

“No not it doesn’t change me at all,” Grimes said when asked about the line. “I mean it will be great if your D-line is hitting the quarterback all the time, honestly. But I play the same way all the time. I’m trying to make plays, I’m trying to be technically and fundamentally sound.”

Some people have been looking for Grimes to play a mentor and leadership role to the young rookie cornerbacks Carlton Davis and M.J. Stewart. Grimes mentioned he’s seen good things from the two, and though he likes playing along side them, he enjoys playing with any of his teammates, young and old while also learning – even from the young players.

“I enjoy working with people,” Grimes said. “It’s fun communicating. I ask other people questions, it not just they got to ask me questions, I ask other people questions, too.

“Just talking to anybody, you could learn something from anyone. I might get something from them, they might tell me something that they saw. So just communicating with people, you never know what you could get out of it. So just people in general, I have a good time with that.”

Bucs CB Brent Grimes – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Father Time will eventually catch up with Grimes, but until then he plays because he still enjoys being on the football field.

“For me, I’m trying to have fun with it, when I’m having fun the game is, a game,” Grimes said. “You can play free and have a good time out there instead of being chronically anxious and just worried about everything in tense, I’m just trying to be free and fun out there honestly.”

–Story by Matt Matera