Orantes Grant


Orantes Laquay Grant is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins and Cleveland Browns. He played college football at the University of Georgia and was drafted in the seventh round of the 2000 NFL Draft.

Early years

Grant was a three-year starter at Dunwoody High School, where he helped his team win the AAAA state championship in 1993 as a tight end. He was switched to linebacker as a senior, receiving All-State honors while making 130 tackles. He also had 570 rushing yards at running back.
He was named the DeKalb County Defensive Player of the Year award from the Dunwoody News and was listed in the Top 50 Georgia list by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

College career

Grant accepted a football scholarship from the University of Georgia. As a freshman he was a backup and had 42 tackles. In 1997, he was named the starter at weakside linebacker, registering 81 tackles and 2 forced fumbles.
In 1998, he posted 125 tackles, 80 solo tackles and 6 tackles for loss. Including 22 tackles against the University of Kentucky and 14 against the University of Tennessee.
As a senior, his stats suffered because of a change in the defensive scheme. He made 69 tackles and 46 solo tackles. Against Vanderbilt University, he had 13 tackles and one sack. He made 10 tackles against Georgia Institute of Technology. He finished his career with 44 games, 312 tackles, 190 solo tackles and 15 sacks.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Grant was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the 7th round of the 2000 NFL Draft, reuniting with George Edwards who was his position coach in college. As a rookie, he was deactivated for the first 2 games. He was a backup behind Dexter Coakley and tied for fourth on the team with 11 special teams tackles.
He played mostly on special teams before being released on September 1, 2002.

Washington Redskins

Grant was signed by the Washington Redskins as a free agent on December 14, 2002. He was waived on October 28, 2003.

Cleveland Browns

On November 26, 2003, he signed with the Cleveland Browns as a free agent. He was released on December 3.