Coming off three consecutive Pro Bowl campaigns in Miami, Brent Grimes has quietly put together another great season in Tampa, both as a player and a mentor.
“He’s been what we anticipated we were going to get when we signed him as a free agent,” Bucs defensive coordinator Mike Smith said Thursday. “He’s been a guy who I think has been a great mentor for some of these young guys in our room, in terms of how you’re supposed to play defensive back.”
CB Brent Grimes – Photo by: Getty Images
As well as being sounding board for the likes of Vernon Hargreaves and Javien Elliott, the 10th-year pro has also led by example on the field.
Since Week 4, Grimes has defended 18 passes and picked off another three. He also has a chance to hit 60 tackles this Sunday (currently at 53), which would be a fourth for his career and the first time since 2013, his first year in Miami.
“He’s a very active player that gets his hands on a lot of footballs, and he’s been a productive guy,” said Smith, who drafted Grimes in 2007 and coached him in Atlanta for six years prior to reuniting in Tampa. “He’s made some game-saving tackles. In fact, the last time we played Carolina, he had the game-saving tackle on the 1-yard line and then on the next play he had the pick.”
Though he stands 5-foot-10, Smith said Grimes, 34, can jump “like he’s a 6-foot-4 guy,” which the aforementioned pick in Week 5 illustrated best. He’s also a student of the game, Smith said, always watching film and keeping tabs on opposing wide receivers and quarterbacks.
“He’s been a productive player for us and I certainly hope he continues to beat Father Time and will be with us for a little bit longer,” Smith said. Grimes’ contract, signed last March, was a two-year deal worth $16.5 million with $7 million guaranteed. His cap hit for 2017 would be $6.5 million.
