ATLANTA — Rex Grossman just turned 35 years old on Sunday. But hearing from his fifth NFL team wasn't a surprise birthday gift.
In fact, he said on Wednesday, his first practicing with the Falcons after signing a 1-year contract for a reported $1 million, that he was in wait-and-see mode for weeks. The move reunites him with Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, who coached Grossman in the same capacity in Houston, Washington and Cleveland.
When I asked the 13-year veteran if his goal was to secure the backup quarterback job behind starter Matt Ryan, Grossman said he only "wants to do whatever I can to help the team."
What that says about Shanahan and the team's faith in the progress of the other two quarterbacks on the roster behind Ryan, T.J. Yates and Sean Renfree, is anyone's guess as Shanahan did not speak to the media Wednesday.
But if you're the guys who were competing for the No. 2 job and two weeks before the season starts your team deems it necessary to sign a player whose last regular season action came in 2011, one who has more career interceptions than touchdown passes, what would be going through your mind?
The fact of the matter is Grossman knows this new offense better than every player in the offensive meeting room ... right now.
Bringing him in can't hurt. Besides, Matt Ryan is only one hit away from being sidelined -- might as well bring in someone from that sideline who will know exactly what the coaches want from him in a pinch.
The major injuries this preseason have shown all of us that you can never be too safe. Especially when, as Grossman said, "Even though I've only spent one day here, I can already see this team is gonna be good."
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