Buccaneers go with Cody Grimm at safety
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have announced that rookie safety Cody Grimm will be inserted into the starting lineup in the place of Tanard Jackson, who was suspended for the season due to violating the substance-abuse policy.
Jackson was one of the most important players on the Tampa defence. He missed the first four games of the 2009 season for a first-time violation of the substance-abuse policy. Morris worked closely with Jackson when he was coaching the defensive backs.
On the subject of Grimm, Morris said, “...he's gone out there and excelled and play well and has been impressive in all his opportunities,” Morris said. “He's been a guy who's been cool, calm and collected.”
Grimm, who was a seventh-round pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, was a walk-on linebacker at Virginia Tech. Grimm made his name in Blacksburg by forcing fumbles and tackling.
Morris was confident in picking Grimm over fourth-year safety Sabby Piscitelli.
“I can go on and on about all the things that prompted me to have to go with Cody and have the confidence to put him out there,” Morris said. “There was definitely thought about Sabby. Sabby's played over there a little bit. He's the backup strong safety
and he definitely would have [gone] in if anything would have happened to Sean (Jones). He'll still be a significant part.”
Morris chose to go with Grimm for Sunday's game against the 2-0 Steelers because of the performances he has shown during his short time in the NFL.
“You watch the kid go out there and perform, and then you put him in different situations that you didn't see him in [in] college and he performs the way he has so far,” Morris said. “He's been a student of the game. The limited amount of errors that he
has made as a rookie, it gives you a great feel about him. I want to see him go out and play.”
In college, nobody gave Grimm a shot and he ended up being All-American. The critics also said that Grimm wouldn't make it in the NFL. He now faces the opportunity to quiet his critics once more.
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