Special teams don't tend to be a huge part of fantasy leagues, with the way kick return touchdowns have declined. Just a decade ago you'd see upward of 20 kick and punt return scores per year; over the past five the averages have been about 11-12. Last year's "dynamic kickoff" change flopped, with most teams content to boot the ball into the end zone.
But while touchdowns in this area have declined, there are some teams still a little better than others in terms of returning punts and kickoffs, which adds interest to a recent special teams hire. The Broncos have hired Sean Payton's former special team coordinator in New Orleans to run Denver's special teams. It's a pairing that links two of the league's best units in punt returns the past two years.
There have been only 14 punt return touchdowns across the past two seasons, but the Saints have two of them. They've ranked in the top 5 (average yards per return) both years. And while Denver's main returner Marvin Mims doesn't have a punt return touchdown in either season, the Broncos have ranked No. 1 in yards per return both seasons, with Mims having a pair of returns over 50 yards (that fell short of the end zone). He also has a touchdown on a kickoff return.
Table shows team punt returns numbers the past two seasons, sorted by 2024 return average.
| TEAM PUNT RETURNS, 2023-2024 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Avg(23) | Lg(23) | TD(23) | Rank(23) | Avg(24) | Lg(24) | TD(24) | Rank(24) |
| Denver | 16.3 | 52 | 0 | 1 | 15.7 | 61 | 0 | 1 |
| New England | 6.3 | 25 | 0 | 31 | 14.2 | 62 | 0 | 2 |
| Detroit | 11.4 | 42 | 0 | 7 | 12.9 | 90T | 1 | 3 |
| Chicago | 8.2 | 31 | 0 | 23 | 12.7 | 94T | 1 | 4 |
| New Orleans | 12.3 | 76 | 1 | 5 | 12.5 | 54T | 1 | 5 |
| LA Chargers | 16.0 | 87 | 1 | 2 | 12.0 | 53 | 0 | 6 |
| Jacksonville | 10.2 | 48 | 0 | 9-10 | 11.8 | 96T | 1 | 7 |
| Buffalo | 11.6 | 96 | 1 | 6 | 11.6 | 29 | 0 | 8 |
| Washington | 7.9 | 61 | 0 | 25-26 | 10.4 | 24 | 0 | 9 |
| Pittsburgh | 8.6 | 34 | 0 | 21 | 10.3 | 73T | 1 | 10 |
| Cleveland | 8.4 | 21 | 0 | 22 | 10.0 | 28 | 0 | 11 |
| Kansas City | 9.3 | 50 | 0 | 16 | 9.9 | 55 | 0 | 12 |
| Dallas | 5.4 | 15 | 0 | 32 | 9.8 | 60 | 1 | 13-15 |
| Indianapolis | 9.2 | 32 | 0 | 17-18 | 9.8 | 36 | 0 | 13-15 |
| Las Vegas | 10.0 | 32 | 0 | 11 | 9.8 | 24 | 0 | 13-15 |
| Baltimore | 14.4 | 76 | 1 | 3-4 | 9.7 | 22 | 0 | 16 |
| Arizona | 9.2 | 49 | 0 | 17-18 | 9.6 | 27 | 0 | 17-18 |
| Miami | 9.8 | 19 | 0 | 12 | 9.6 | 44 | 0 | 17-18 |
| Atlanta | 7.2 | 23 | 0 | 30 | 9.5 | 28 | 0 | 19 |
| Philadelphia | 14.4 | 54 | 0 | 3-4 | 9.2 | 31 | 0 | 20-21 |
| San Francisco | 8.0 | 19 | 0 | 24 | 9.2 | 30 | 0 | 20-21 |
| LA Rams | 7.3 | 29 | 0 | 28-29 | 8.9 | 38 | 0 | 22 |
| Green Bay | 7.3 | 35 | 0 | 28-29 | 8.3 | 39 | 0 | 23-24 |
| Houston | 9.7 | 22 | 0 | 13-14 | 8.3 | 36 | 0 | 23-24 |
| NY Jets | 9.7 | 65 | 1 | 13-14 | 8.1 | 40 | 0 | 25 |
| NY Giants | 8.9 | 94 | 1 | 19 | 7.6 | 25 | 0 | 26-27 |
| Tampa Bay | 9.4 | 51 | 0 | 15 | 7.6 | 17 | 0 | 26-27 |
| Carolina | 8.7 | 79 | 1 | 20 | 7.4 | 16 | 0 | 28-30 |
| Seattle | 10.6 | 32 | 0 | 8 | 7.4 | 23 | 0 | 28-30 |
| Tennessee | 7.9 | 21 | 0 | 25-26 | 7.4 | 20 | 0 | 28-30 |
| Cincinnati | 10.2 | 81 | 1 | 9-10 | 7.3 | 23 | 0 | 31 |
| Minnesota | 7.8 | 25 | 0 | 27 | 6.8 | 15 | 0 | 32 |
Denver's defense was going to be among the top groups for next season anyway, after having 9 more sacks last year than any other team (63) and ranking 7th in takeaways (25). But I'll be giving them a slight boost in terms of likelihood of scoring on a punt or kick return, as well.
--Andy Richardson