If you're in a TD-only league, you look at defenses and special teams a little bit different than everyone else. You want teams that will score touchdowns. Sacks and turnovers are important, since those things often lead to defensive scores, but the teams that will bring kicks or punts back for a touchdown have high value.
The NFL, though, has made touchdowns on kickoffs less common. There are too many injuries on those kinds of plays, so kickoffs are now back at the 35-yard line -- and most of today's strong-legged kickers kick all of those through the end zone. In 2014 there were just 6 kickoff returns for touchdowns in the entire NFL. In 2013, only 7. Not something to build a draft strategy around.
Punt returns, though, are a little more common. There were 13 last year, and 13 the year before that. Thus far in 2015, there have been 6 punt return touchdowns in 3 weeks, so they're on pace to more than double last year's total. (That said, there have also been 3 kickoff return touchdowns, on pace for 16, which would also more than double last year's total. We'll see if either pace continues.)
The table below shows the main punt returners, currently, for each NFL team, sorted by our ranking of them. A couple teams, like the Cardinals and Bengals, use multiple players; Jacksonville's preferred option, Rashad Greene, is out half the season. We're listing Jacoby Jones and Devin Hester for their respective teams, even though they're currently injured, as they should return soon. Let us know who you think we've got too high or too low.
| NFL PUNT RETURNERS | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | |
| Tyler Lockett, Sea. | 7 | 94 | 13.4 | 57T | |
| Tavon Austin, St.L. | 5 | 117 | 23.4 | 75T | |
| Travis Benjamin, Clev. | 10 | 173 | 17.3 | 78T | |
| Darren Sproles, Phi. | 8 | 134 | 16.8 | 89T | |
| DeAnthony Thomas, K.C. | 14 | 114 | 8.1 | 19 | |
| Antonio Brown, Pit. | 5 | 70 | 14.0 | 29 | |
| Jarvis Landry, Mia. | 6 | 118 | 19.7 | 69T | |
| Devin Hester, Atl. (injured) | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| Marcus Murphy, N.O. | 4 | 84 | 21.0 | 74T | |
| Jarryd Hayne, S.F. | 3 | 44 | 14.7 | 37 | |
| Golden Tate, Det. | 3 | 36 | 12.0 | 20 | |
| Marcus Sherels, Minn. | 8 | 86 | 10.8 | 31 | |
| Ted Ginn, Car. | 7 | 90 | 12.9 | 37 | |
| J.J. Nelson, Ariz. | 3 | 15 | 5.0 | 11 | |
| Brandon Tate, Cin. | 5 | 54 | 10.8 | 18 | |
| Dexter McCluster, Tenn. | 9 | 54 | 6.0 | 16 | |
| Danny Amendola, N.E. | 6 | 58 | 9.7 | 28 | |
| Dwayne Harris, NYG | 7 | 69 | 9.9 | 29 | |
| Micah Hyde, G.B. | 4 | 30 | 7.5 | 13 | |
| Michael Campanaro, Balt. | 3 | 49 | 16.3 | 21 | |
| Emmanuel Sanders, Den. | 5 | 33 | 6.6 | 13 | |
| Marcus Thigpen, Buf. | 4 | 27 | 6.8 | 14 | |
| Jacoby Jones, S.D. (injured) | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| Jeremy Kerley, NYJ | 9 | 82 | 9.1 | 19 | |
| Cole Beasley, Dall. | 5 | 18 | 3.6 | 12 | |
| Jamison Crowder, Was. | 8 | 45 | 5.6 | 13 | |
| Keith Mumphery, Hou. | 10 | 72 | 7.2 | 15 | |
| Bobby Rainey, T.B. | 10 | 99 | 9.9 | 23 | |
| Marc Mariani, Chi. | 2 | 31 | 15.5 | 20 | |
| Griff Whalen, Ind. | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | |
| T.J. Carrie, Oak. | 6 | 38 | 6.3 | 11 | |
| Nick Marshall, Jac. | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | |
--Andy Richardson