Hroniss Grasu (/həˈroʊnɪs ˈɡrɑːsuː/ hə-ROH-niss GRAH-soo; born August 12, 1991) is an American professional football center who is a free agent. He played college football for the University of Oregon, and was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the third round of the 2015 NFL draft.
Personal information | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Born: | Northridge, California, U.S. | August 12, 1991||||||
Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||
Weight: | 300 lb (136 kg) | ||||||
Career information | |||||||
High school: | Crespi Carmelite (Encino, California) | ||||||
College: | Oregon (2010–2014) | ||||||
Position: | Center | ||||||
NFL draft: | 2015 / round: 3 / pick: 71 | ||||||
Career history | |||||||
| |||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||
| |||||||
Career NFL statistics as of 2023 | |||||||
|
Early life
editA native of Los Angeles, California, Grasu attended Crespi Carmelite High School, where he was an All-State offensive lineman. Regarded as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, Grasu was ranked as the No. 12 center prospect in his class.[1]
College career
editAs a freshman, Grasu took over as the starting center for the Oregon Ducks and remained the starter through his senior season. He earned All-Freshman Second-team in 2011, as well as All-Pac-12 Conference First-team in 2012, 2013 and 2014. He was named an All-American in 2013 and 2014. He was also a finalist for the Rimington Trophy in 2013 and 2014.[2]
Professional career
editHeight | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
297 lb (135 kg) |
32+1⁄8 in (0.82 m) |
10+1⁄4 in (0.26 m) |
5.03 s | 1.69 s | 2.82 s | 4.20 s | 7.84 s | ||||
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[3][4] |
Chicago Bears
editGrasu was drafted in the third round by the Chicago Bears with the 71st overall pick of the 2015 NFL draft.[5] The move reunited him with college teammate Kyle Long.
On August 30, 2016, Grasu was placed on injured reserve.[6]
On September 2, 2018, Grasu was released by the Bears.[7]
Baltimore Ravens (first stint)
editOn September 24, 2018, Grasu was signed by the Baltimore Ravens.[8] He played in three games before being released on November 24, 2018.[9]
Miami Dolphins
editOn December 12, 2018, Grasu was signed by the Miami Dolphins, but was released nine days later.[10][11]
Tennessee Titans
editOn February 7, 2019, Grasu was signed by the Tennessee Titans, reuniting with college teammate Marcus Mariota.[12] He was released on August 31, 2019.[13] He was re-signed on September 10, 2019.[14] He was released again on October 8, 2019.[15] He was signed once again on October 31, 2019.[16] He was released on December 3, 2019.
Baltimore Ravens (second stint)
editOn December 4, 2019, Grasu was claimed off waivers by the Ravens.[17]
San Francisco 49ers
editOn August 20, 2020, Grasu signed with the San Francisco 49ers.[18] He was released on September 5, 2020, and signed to the practice squad the next day.[19][20] After being elevated to the active roster for the team's first two games, Grasu was promoted to the active roster on September 26, 2020.[21] He was placed on the team's reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on November 19, 2020,[22] and activated on November 25.[23] He was placed back on the COVID-19 list on December 28, 2020,[24] and activated on January 14, 2021.[25]
Las Vegas Raiders
editOn October 25, 2021, Grasu was signed to the Las Vegas Raiders practice squad.[26] After the Raiders were eliminated in the 2021 Wild Card round of the playoffs, he signed a reserve/future contract on January 17, 2022.[27]
On August 30, 2022, Grasu was waived by the Raiders and signed to the practice squad the next day.[28][29] He was promoted to the active roster on December 10.[30]
On August 29, 2023, Grasu was released by the Raiders and re-signed to the practice squad.[31] He was signed to the active roster on December 21.[32]
Personal life
editGrasu is of Romanian descent.[33] His parents, Ștefan and Mariana Grasu, emigrated from Romania to Los Angeles in 1982, opening the "Greco's New York Pizzeria" on Hollywood Boulevard.[34][35] His older brother, Nico, was a placekicker for Washington State (2008–10).
Grasu was roommates with Bryan Bennett, Oregon's former backup quarterback and a former teammate of Grasu at Crespi.[36]
His selection with the 71st overall pick in the draft by the Bears was portrayed in the season 7 premiere of The League on FX.
Grasu married New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu in March 2024. Ionescu is also of Romanian descent.[37][38]
References
edit- ^ Rankings Yahoo! [dead link ]
- ^ College Football Awards 2014
- ^ "Hroniss Grasu Draft Profile". NFL.com. Archived from the original on November 9, 2018. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
- ^ "Hroniss Grasu, Virginia Tech, C, 2015 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
- ^ "NFL Draft picks 2015: Hroniss Grasu taken by Bears in 3rd round". SB Nation. May 1, 2015.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (August 30, 2016). "Bears trim five to reach 75-man limit". ChicagoBears.com. Retrieved September 1, 2022.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (September 2, 2018). "Roster Moves: Bears place Shaheen on IR, waive Grasu". ChicagoBears.com. Archived from the original on September 23, 2018. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- ^ Mink, Ryan (September 24, 2018). "Ravens Sign Former Starting Center Hroniss Grasu". BaltimoreRavens.com.
- ^ Brown, Clifton (November 24, 2018). "CB Maurice Canady Activated From IR, G/C Hroniss Grasu Waived". BaltimoreRavens.com. Archived from the original on November 24, 2018. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ "Dolphins Sign Hroniss Grasu". MiamiDolphins.com. December 12, 2018.
- ^ "Maurice Smith Promoted To Active Roster". MiamiDolphins.com. December 21, 2018.
- ^ Wyatt, Jim (February 7, 2019). "Titans Add Veteran Offensive Lineman Hroniss Grasu". TitansOnline.com. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
- ^ Wyatt, Jim (August 31, 2019). "Roster Moves: Titans Trim Roster to 53 Players While Also Trading WR Taywan Taylor to Browns". TitansOnline.com.
- ^ Wyatt, Jim (September 10, 2019). "Titans Bring Back OL Hroniss Grasu, Waive RB Dalyn Dawkins". TitansOnline.com.
- ^ Wyatt, Jim (October 8, 2019). "Titans Add K Cody Parkey and Two RBs – Rod Smith and Dalyn Dawkins – During a Flurry of Roster Moves". TitansOnline.com. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
- ^ Wyatt, Jim (October 31, 2019). "Roster Move: Titans Re-Sign OL Hroniss Grasu, Release WR Darius Jennings". TitansOnline.com. Archived from the original on October 31, 2019. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
- ^ Brown, Clifton (December 4, 2019). "Ravens Claim Veteran Center Off Waivers". BaltimoreRavens.com.
- ^ "49ers Announce Roster Moves". 49ers.com. August 20, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
- ^ "49ers Announce Roster Moves". 49ers.com. September 5, 2020.
- ^ "49ers Sign 16 Players to the Practice Squad". 49ers.com. September 5, 2020.
- ^ "49ers Announce Roster Moves". 49ers.com. September 26, 2020.
- ^ "49ers Place Two on Reserve/COVID-19 List". 49ers.com. November 19, 2020. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
- ^ Martin, Keiana (November 25, 2020). "Richard Sherman, Deebo Samuel and Others Likely to Return vs. Rams". 49ers.com. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
- ^ "49ers Announce Roster Moves". 49ers.com. December 28, 2020. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
- ^ "49ers' Hroniss Grasu: Back from COVID-19 list". CBSSports.com. January 14, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
- ^ "Raiders sign TE Daniel Helm to active roster, OL Hroniss Grasu to practice squad". Raiders.com. October 25, 2021.
- ^ Raiders Public Relations (January 17, 2022). "Raiders announce Reserve/Future signings". Raiders.com. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
- ^ "Raiders finalize initial 53-man roster for the 2022 season". Raiders.com. August 30, 2022.
- ^ "Raiders announce practice squad additions". Raiders.com. August 31, 2022.
- ^ @Raiders (December 10, 2022). "We have signed C Hroniss Grasu to the active roster and waived G John Simpson" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Raiders finalize initial 53-man roster for the 2023 season". Raiders.com. August 29, 2023.
- ^ Damien, Levi. "Raiders waive DE Malik Reed, sign C Hroniss Grasu". Raiders Wire. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
- ^ "C Grasu is the anchor of Oregon's offense". USA Today. August 18, 2014.
- ^ "Grasu's kid brother growing up quickly". Archived from the original on January 11, 2016. Retrieved April 21, 2015.
- ^ "Oregon center Hroniss Grasu's journey from Crespi to CFP title game". Los Angeles Daily News. January 10, 2015.
- ^ Oregon center Hroniss Grasu 'clears out all the chaos' for Marcus Mariota and the Ducks
- ^ "Basketball Star Sabrina Ionescu Is Married! See the Sweet Photos from Guests Including Vanessa Bryant". March 12, 2024. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
- ^ Hooks, Kalan (March 12, 2024). "Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu gets married to Raiders' Hroniss Grasu". ESPN. Retrieved September 20, 2024.