Atlanta Falcons: Is Cordarrelle Patterson done returning kicks?

On Sunday, we all watched history being made as Cordarrelle Patterson had his ninth career kickoff return for a touchdown, setting an NFL record. Not only that but it came at a perfect time for the Atlanta Falcons.

The Falcons clearly wanted to get him the record even if it meant risking one of their best offensive players, but now that he has the record, will he still be returning kicks?

Will the Atlanta Falcons allow Cordarrelle Patterson to extend his NFL record?

If you get nine kick return touchdowns, why not reach for ten? Well, the Atlanta Falcons might decide that it isn’t worth Cordarrelle Patterson’s health, especially since they have a solid return man sitting right behind him in Avery Williams.

Patterson is a dynamic football player, he can seemingly do everything. Remember when he was listed as a backup safety last year? Too bad we never got to see it.

There is no doubt he is the greatest player to ever return kickoffs, but now that he is a key piece for this Falcons offense, is it really worth risking his health? It wouldn’t be shocking if you don’t see him back there anymore.

However, following his record-breaking return, he was still back in the endzone to return kicks, which may lead us to believe the Falcons are willing to roll with the risk.

In my personal opinion, I think you should be willing to risk it because it isn’t like special teams are pointless. You can have game-changing plays (as we saw on Sunday) on kickoffs. His ability as a returner is too incredible to have on the bench.

Even if he doesn’t get another touchdown, he can still get 40-yard returns that help out the offense in big ways. Too many people think of special teams as an unimportant area of the game but that mindset needs to change. Cordarrelle Patterson is too good to not return kicks.