Ryan Grigson

Ryan Richard Grigson (born February 23, 1972) is an American football executive currently serving as senior football advisor for the Cleveland Browns. From 2012 to 2016, he served as the general manager of the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL).

Ryan Grigson
Cleveland Browns
Position:Senior football advisor
Personal information
Born: (1972-02-23) February 23, 1972
East Chicago, Indiana
Height:6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Weight:290 lb (132 kg)
Career information
High school:Highland (IN)
College:Purdue
NFL Draft:1995 / Round: 6 / Pick: 175
Career history
As player:
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
As coach:
As executive:
Career highlights and awards

Grigson played college football as a tight end and offensive tackle for the Purdue Boilermakers and was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the sixth round of the 1995 NFL Draft. He was a member of the Detroit Lions from 1995 to 1996, and played for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League in 1997 before he retired due to a back injury. Grigson was a pro scout for the Saskatchewan Roughriders and an assistant coach for McPherson College in 1998. In 1999, he was a player personnel coordinator and assistant coach for the Buffalo Destroyers of the Arena Football League.

From 1999 to 2003, Grigson was a national and regional scout for the St. Louis Rams. He was hired by the Eagles as a western regional scout in 2004, and was promoted to director of college scouting in 2006. He was promoted to director of player personnel in 2010. He also has worked with the Seattle Seahawks and Cleveland Browns.

Playing career

College

Grigson signed his letter of intent to play college football for the Purdue Boilermakers in 1990,[1] where he would play from 1990 to 1994.[2] On October 10, 1992, in a game against Minnesota, Grigson was hit in the abdomen by a defender and sustained a life-threatening injury. He was hospitalized immediately after and the blow resulted in pancreatitis, kidney failure and pneumonia.[3] He missed the rest of the season, likely to never play again,[4] after becoming a starter during his sophomore year.[5][6] Grigson returned for the 1993 season, started ten games and was named one of three captains, along with Mike Alstott and Matt Kingsbury, for the 1994 season (Purdue's first winning season in a decade).[7]

Professional

Grigson was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the sixth round (175th overall) of the 1995 NFL Draft. He was signed to a contract by the Bengals on June 10, 1995, but was waived during final cuts on August 28. He was signed by the Detroit Lions shortly thereafter and spent the 1995 season with the team. He was released by the Lions on August 14, 1996.[8] He played for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League in 1997 before he suffered a career-ending back injury and was forced to retire.[2]

Executive and coaching career

Early career

Following his retirement from playing, Grigson became a pro scout for the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 1998. In the same year, he was an assistant coach for McPherson College's football team. In 1999, he was a player personnel coordinator and assistant coach for the Buffalo Destroyers of the Arena Football League.[2]

National Football League

Grigson was hired by the St. Louis Rams as a national scout in 1999. He was part of the Rams' Super Bowl XXXIV championship team in 1999 and the Rams' NFC Championship/Super Bowl XXXVI team in 2001 as an area scout.

On May 15, 2004, Grigson was hired by the Philadelphia Eagles as a western regional scout. He was a part of the Eagles' NFC Championship/Super Bowl XXXIX team in 2004. On June 8, 2006, he was promoted to director of college scouting,[2] and on February 3, 2010, he was promoted to director of player personnel.[9]

Indianapolis Colts

Grigson was hired by the Indianapolis Colts as their general manager on January 11, 2012, inheriting a 2-14 team from the year before.[10] After the 2012 season, which put the Colts back in the NFL Playoffs with an 11–5 record, the nine win improvement from the previous year tied the third largest improvement in league history.[3] Thanks to this turnaround, which included changing 70% of the roster,[3] Grigson earned Executive of the Year honors from the Sporting News [11] and Pro Football Weekly.[12] He also won the 2013 Drew Brees Mental Toughness Award from the Northwest Indiana Chapter of the National Football Foundation.[13] On September 18, 2013, Ryan Grigson traded a 2014 first-round draft pick for Trent Richardson.[14] The Colts were looking for a running back after a season-ending injury to Vick Ballard. Richardson was released following the 2014 NFL season.

On January 11, 2015—Grigson's third anniversary with the team—the Indianapolis Colts beat the Denver Broncos to qualify for the AFC Championship game against the New England Patriots. During the AFC championship, he asked NFL officials to check the Patriots' balls, which set in motion the "Deflategate" scandal.[15] The Colts lost the game 45–7.

The Colts, who struggled with injuries including one to quarterback Andrew Luck, stumbled in the 2015 season and finished 8-8 and out of the playoffs. They did, however, manage to set the NFL record for the longest winning streak against any division in the league with their 16th consecutive victory over an AFC South opponent when they beat the Houston Texans during Week 5. The record surpassed the previous mark of 15, recorded by the Super Bowl Champion Miami Dolphins against the AFC East during the perfect season of 1972 and into the following season.[3] On January 4, 2016, the Colts announced that Grigson and head coach Chuck Pagano had both received contract extensions through the 2019 season.[16]

On January 21, 2017, Grigson was relieved of his duties as general manager. The Colts failed to make the playoffs in the two consecutive seasons leading up to his firing, the first time the team had missed the playoffs in consecutive years since the 1997–98 seasons. One move that made many question Grigson was the infamous Trent Richardson deal that lost the Colts a first round draft pick. While at the time the move was applauded by many football pundits and fans,[17] the trade ultimately didn't work out. Trent Richardson ended up averaging only 3.1 yards per carry and scoring only 6 touchdowns in 2 seasons with the team and was a healthy scratch during the AFC Championship game in 2015. Another questionable move that confused many was the drafting of Phillip Dorsett in the 1st round of the 2015 NFL draft, while the Colts offensive line was struggling to protect their franchise quarterback, and their defense coming off a less than mediocre season. However a trade that worked out exceptionally well for Grigson and the Colts was the acquisition of former first round draft pick Vontae Davis in 2012[18] who was a big part of the 2012 turnaround and was later named to the Pro Bowl in both 2014 and 2015.[19] Another move by Grigson was the trade and subsequent selection of T.Y. Hilton in the 2012 NFL draft. Grigson essentially gave up a fifth round pick for the right to move up from the early fourth to the late third round and select a three time Pro Bowl Selection and the NFL's leading receiver in 2016.[20] Overall, the Colts had a regular season record of 49-31 (.613 winning percentage) while Grigson was general manager.

Cleveland Browns (first stint)

On May 24, 2017, Grigson was hired as the senior personnel executive for the Cleveland Browns. In January 2018, the Browns announced that he was no longer part of the team's front office personnel.[21]

Seattle Seahawks

On June 13, 2018, Grigson was hired as a senior football consultant for the Seattle Seahawks, and stayed with the team through the 2019 NFL season.[22][23]

Cleveland Browns (second stint)

Grigson was hired by the Cleveland Browns in an advisory and consulting role in February 2020.[24] The deal was made official on May 29, 2020.

Personal life

Ryan Richard Grigson was born to Jeff and Juanita (Rokita) Grigson in 1972. Jeff Grigson (d.1980) had played college football at Northwest Missouri State University.

Grigson attended Our Lady of Grace Catholic School from 1978 to 1986. He played high school football at Highland Senior High from 1986 to 1990. As a sophomore, he was a member of the Trojan team that played in the 1987 5A State Championship game at the Colts' original stadium, the Hoosier Dome (RCA Dome).

Grigson met his wife, Cynthia, while the two were students at Purdue University. The couple married in 2001 and have six children.[25]

References
  1. "College Football Letters Of Intent". www.chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. February 15, 1990. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  2. Scott, Adam (June 26, 2006). "Front-Office Boilers". Purdue Boilermakers. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  3. "2017 Indianapolis Media Guide" (PDF). Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  4. Hamnik, Al. "Ryan Grigson brings his 'mental toughness' to revitalized Colts". Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  5. "Badgers: Letdown doubtful". The Telegraph-Herald. October 17, 1992. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  6. "Purdue's Grigson out for the season". Post-Tribune. October 21, 1992. Archived from the original on November 5, 2012. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  7. Purdue Football Year by Year Results, retrieved January 4, 2012
  8. "Oilers coach pleased with team's preseason progress". The Free Lance-Star. August 15, 1996. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  9. Promotions in Player Personnel Staff, retrieved January 4, 2012
  10. de la Rosa, Poch. "Indianapolis Colts GM Ryan Grigson Making a Statement for Executive of the Year". Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  11. Colts' Ryan Grigson Voted Sporting News' Executive of the Year, retrieved March 21, 2013
  12. Grigson Voted PFW/PFWA Executive of the Year, archived from the original on January 21, 2013, retrieved March 21, 2013
  13. Toughness Pays Off for Grigson, retrieved June 11, 2013
  14. Rosenthal, Gregg (September 18, 2013). "Trent Richardson traded to Colts from Browns for pick". National Football League. Retrieved September 18, 2013.
  15. Kirstie Chiappelli (February 3, 2015). "Troy Vincent confirms Colts' tip started Deflate-gate". The Sporting News.
  16. "Colts shocker: Coach Chuck Pagano, GM Ryan Grigson will return to Indy". cbssports.com. Retrieved February 8, 2017.
  17. Trapasso, Chris. "Trent Richardson Trade: Who Won, and What Are Experts Saying?". Bleacher Report. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
  18. "Colts trade for CB Vontae Davis". Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  19. "Trade review: Dolphins probably regret trading Vontae Davis to Colts". December 23, 2015. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  20. "Team-by-team look at best NFL draft trades of the last decade". Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  21. "Cleveland Browns | Front Office". Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  22. "Former Colts GM Ryan Grigson lands with Seahawks". NFL.com.
  23. "Former Indianapolis Colts' GM Enjoying Ride to Playoffs With the Seattle Seahawks". ncregister.com. December 27, 2019. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  24. Cabot, Mary Kay (February 13, 2020). "Former Browns exec Ryan Grigson an advisor to GM Andrew Berry; likely to be hired full-time after NFL draft". Cleveland.com. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  25. "Indianapolis Colts' GM Speaks of Playoffs, Parenting and Padre Pio". ncregister.com. Retrieved February 8, 2017.
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