Thanks to playmakers like Devin Hester, Leon Washington, Josh Cribbs, and many others being viewed as kick return specialist first and receivers, running backs, or defensive backs later have developed an essential role to an NFL teams that in the draft could substanially add to a prospects value and overall round grade.
So, we’ll rank the top kick returners in this draft, which looks to a strong point in this one and could have all of these prospects playing on Sunday’s next year, kick returning or not. For the record, some of these players may not have been a returner in college but have the skills to be one in the NFL.
| Name | College | Height | Weight | Proj. Round | Notes | ||
| 1 | . | Jerrell Jernigan | Troy | 5’9 | 185 | 2nd-3rd | Gamebreaker with great speed and separation ability |
| 2 | Torrey Smith | Maryland | 6’0 | 190 | 3rd-5th | Above average speed; gets deep; improving route runner | |
| 3 | . | Derrick Locke | Kentucky | 5’9 | 182 | 4th-6th | Explosive back with durability issues; playmaker, returner |
| 4 | . | Ronald Johnson | USC | 6’0 | 185 | 6th-Undrafted | Underachieved, has talent, but hasn’t put it all together |
| 5 | . | Titus Young | Boise State | 5’11 | 170 | 2nd-3rd | Deep threat and the Bronco’s number one option. |
| 6 | . | Jacquizz Rogers | Oregon State | 5’9 | 180 | 4th-6th | Playmaker, probable returner, doesn’t have size to be #1 |
| 7 | . | Justin Rodgers | Richmond | 5’10 | 181 | 3rd-5th | Great speed, he will at the very least get a shot at returner |
| 8 | . | Randall Cobb | Kentucky | 6;0 | 190 | 2nd-3rd | Playmaker, a combination of Percy Harvin and Brad Smith |
| 9 | . | DaNorris Searcy | North Carolina | 6’0 | 210 | 6th-Undrafted | |
| 10 | . | Kendall Hunter | Oklahoma State | 5’8 | 175 | 5th-7th | Works between tackles well, tough runner, size hurts |
| 11 | . | Niles Paul | Nebraska | 6’1 | 220 | 6th-Undrafted | Quick off the line and plays physical; has deep speed |
| 12 | . | Noel Devine | West Virginia | 5’8 | 175 | 6th-Undrafted | Size hurts a lot, but his explosiveness is hard to pass on |
| 13 | . | Rashad Carmichael | Virginia Tech | 5’10 | 182 | 2nd-3rd | Plays well in big games and big situations against good WR |
| 14 | . | Joe Lefeged | Rutgers | 6’0 | 190 | 5th-7th | Surprisingly athlete, solid range, struggles man to man |
| 15 | . | Quinton Carter | Oklahoma | 6’0 | 210 | 4th-6th | |
| 16 | . | Dwayne Harris | East Carolina | 6’0 | 205 | 4th-6th | Doesn’t always “show up”, but has the speed to be a threat |
| 17 | . | Jeremy Kerley | TCU | 5’9 | 188 | 3rd-5th | Quick receiver, explosive, good concentration, slot guy |
| 18 | Edmond Gates | Abilene Christian | 5’11 | 190 | 5th-7th | Has become a complete receivers, workouts will be huge | |
| 19 | . | Aldrick Robinson | SMU | 5’10 | 178 | 6th-Undrafted | |
| 20 | . | Jock Sanders | West Virginia | 5’6 | 170 | 6th-Undrafted |
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