Chuck 54
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I keep hearing people who are afraid to risk Newman's health returning punts as he is so important to the defense.
I understand that logically the more plays you play, the more likely it is to get hurt, even if 5-6 punt returns a game, and quite a few of them fair catches & pooch kicks & into the endzone, is actually a very small percentage of extra plays.
I've been watching NFL football and the Cowboys since 1967, and I can tell you without actually looking up stats that I don't believe punt returners get hurt very often. I would even say it's very rare and that return blockers and defenders probably get hurt much more often than returners. If you want to win, you have to put the best players in position to make plays.
I never saw Mel Renfro, who is in the HOF as a CB, every hurt returning punts. As a matter of fact, he was the ProBowl MVP once for two td returns, I believe. I never saw Deon get hurt returning a punt, although he may have been nicked a time or two. Bob Hayes was a return man. It's nice if you find a specialist who just happens to excell at it and can be among the best and scariest in the game, but that's actually quite rare.
Most teams end up going no where with punt returns because they have nobodies doing the job. If Newman is the best we have, then put the ball in his hands and lets score some huge returns till they start kicking out of bounds like they did with Deon. Newman is more likely to pull a muscle running in coverage or get hurt making a tackle than he is running back punts...my opinion.
I understand that logically the more plays you play, the more likely it is to get hurt, even if 5-6 punt returns a game, and quite a few of them fair catches & pooch kicks & into the endzone, is actually a very small percentage of extra plays.
I've been watching NFL football and the Cowboys since 1967, and I can tell you without actually looking up stats that I don't believe punt returners get hurt very often. I would even say it's very rare and that return blockers and defenders probably get hurt much more often than returners. If you want to win, you have to put the best players in position to make plays.
I never saw Mel Renfro, who is in the HOF as a CB, every hurt returning punts. As a matter of fact, he was the ProBowl MVP once for two td returns, I believe. I never saw Deon get hurt returning a punt, although he may have been nicked a time or two. Bob Hayes was a return man. It's nice if you find a specialist who just happens to excell at it and can be among the best and scariest in the game, but that's actually quite rare.
Most teams end up going no where with punt returns because they have nobodies doing the job. If Newman is the best we have, then put the ball in his hands and lets score some huge returns till they start kicking out of bounds like they did with Deon. Newman is more likely to pull a muscle running in coverage or get hurt making a tackle than he is running back punts...my opinion.
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