While there’s uncertainty surrounding the kicker situation, the same cannot be said for the return game, which features two versatile threats.
Tarik Cohen is as dangerous as you can get as a punt returner. So much so that last season he earned an All-Pro honor and a Pro Bowl nod, leading the NFL with 413 punt return yards.
So how do you make the Bears’ return game even better? Bring in the game’s best kick returner.
While plenty has been made of the dynamic weapon Cordarrelle Patterson can be with the Bears’ offense, he’s also going to be employed as a threat on kickoff returns.
Patterson is a two-time All-Pro and Pro Bowl selection as a kickoff returner. The Bears have seen firsthand just how electric Patterson is as a returner, as he returned two kickoffs for touchdowns against the Bears — once with the Patriots in 2018 and the Vikings in 2013.
Bears special teams coordinator Chris Tabor has been impressed by Patterson, even going so far to compare him to another dynamic returner that he’s coached, Josh Cribbs.
“Big and strong. Downhill. He’s not afraid,” Tabor said of Patterson. “He’s a pro’s pro. You know exactly what you’re going to get. I like his strength. I like the way he catches the ball. I like the things that he gives you in the return game.”
The Bears won’t be afraid to utilize Patterson in every way they can, whether that’s as a kickoff returner, wide receiver or running back. Any opportunity the Bears can give Patterson to touch the ball, the bigger the threat he’s going to be to score.
