Would the Green Bay Packers Miss RB Ryan Grant If They Released Him?

The Green Bay Packers have a difficult decision on their hands when it comes to their running back position, and the final roster spot may just come down to Ryan Grant and Dimitri Nance, according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Grant, who missed all of last season due to an ankle injury suffered in Week 1 of the regular season, was replaced by Nance on the roster after Grant was placed on injured reserve. In 12 games, Nance rushed for 95 yards on 36 carries and no touchdowns.

Coming into the 2010 season, Grant was coming off back-to-back 1,200-yard years rushing the football in Green Bay. In fact, from 2007-09, only Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings rushed for more yards than Grant. 

The NFL is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately kind of league, however, and Grant isn't guaranteed anything with the Packers based on a handful of successful years, especially after missing the team's entire run to the Super Bowl last season.

Yet the Packers did miss Grant after he was lost, and they struggled to run the football for the majority of the season. Former second-round pick Brandon Jackson couldn't be counted on to pick up chunks of yards on first and second down. The team eventually leaned upon fullback John Kuhn to help replace Grant.

Those struggles last season do beg the question: Would the Packers regret releasing a guy like Grant, who they missed so sorely for most of last season?

It would seem that way, but there are plenty of variables to consider.

The first would be James Starks, who Silverstein seems to think will win the starting running back role over Grant. He came on at the end of last season and was a factor in the Packers getting to the Super Bowl. Against the Philadelphia Eagles, Starks rushed for a Packers' playoff-record 123 yards. He finished the postseason with 315 combined rushing yards, which led all playoff rushers.

The emergence of Alex Green is also something to think about, as he's looked like he could really be an asset in the Packers' backfield early on. Green showed what he could do against the Arizona Cardinals last Friday, scoring a rushing touchdown after setting it up with a 25-yard run on a screen pass from Aaron Rodgers.

But lastly, you have to consider how the Packers want to play offense. During their six-game winning streak to end the season last year, the Packers leaned heavily on Rodgers in the passing game and used the running game to complement him. Head coach Mike McCarthy will want to build on that in 2011.

That means the Packers need a guy who can step in and be counted on in pass protection. Nance could be that guy. He was assignment-sure a season ago, and he's looked the part once again in camp and the preseason. If the Packers don't feel like there's much of a drop off running the football from Grant to Nance, he could be the one they choose to keep.

Money might also be a factor, as Nance is owed just $405,000 this season compared to Grant's $2.5 million base number. The Packers are fine in consideration to the salary cap, however.

With only a handful of carries so far this preseason, it's obviously difficult for the Packers front office to evaluate Grant and his roster adversaries. He'll need to prove he can be the kind of game-breaker he was before his injury to deserve a roster spot. The Packers have two preseason games left for that to happen.

Now, would the Packers miss him if he wasn't on the regular-season roster? That's hard to say. Grant was a steady, downhill runner for a solid chunk of time in Green Bay.

But is he that much of an upgrade as a runner over what the Packers have? And is his tag worth what they'd have to pay him if he's on the roster Sept. 8? Those are tough questions.

All we do know is that the Packers can get by without him. They proved that in 2010.