re: What about Patrick Peterson as a kick/punt returner?

This whole "we're scared a good player might get hurt" thing is ridiculous. How many times have you seen someone get hurt on kick or punt returns? Good thing Kevin Faulk wasn't important to our team, otherwise we wouldn't have been able to use him on kickoffs and punt returns LINK. Domanick Davis was also expendable. Charles Woodson, Peter Warrick, Reggie Bush, Champ Bailey, DeAngelo Hall, and Javier Arenas all agree.

If Peterson is qualified to return kicks or punts, he should absolutely get the chance. For the folks saying that we have players that are better, or as good, at returning kicks, who are they? I haven't seen it.

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yep saban and meyer are so dumb for playing one of their best players in the return games

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Both were ATHLETES first and position players second. Neither one was as talented at their position as PP is as at CB.

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What about Patrick Peterson as a kick/punt returner?

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And if he got hurt fans would be calling for Les Miles head... oh wait

Shep has to wait one more yr. before Les will let him play!

Faulk would qualify for absolute stud...My point, which you missed, is that the people thinking Gore should return punts next year are not being realistic. The pressure to catch and return punts in front of 100,000 is enormous...only absolute stud freshmen, like Faulk, can handle the heat...Do you really think Miles would put that responsibility on a true frosh like Gore...nope

Also there's a difference between returning kickoffs and returning punts. As far as punts go Harvin wasn't Florida's first string punt returner. I am not saying he never returned a punt in his collegiate career, just that he wasn't the main punt returner

I'd like to see Darkness on kickoff returns.

just because he is a good CB does not mean he would be a great punt returner. He should be given a look as a punt returner though, a long with a handfull of others on the team, just to see who would be best for the position. It other words, it's an open competition and let the best man win.

even if he is the best on the team, I would be conservative about getting him injured. He is already the SHUT DOWN CB we need.

There are plenty of young guys who will be willing and eager to get on the field.

If he is all that great a returner, save him for Bama, Gators and SEC cg and my personal favorite, the BCS NC

A few points:

1) returning punts is nowhere as dangerous as thunderbird thinks it is. I've been watching college football for 25 years and can't name anybody who got seriously hurt returning. I'm sure there've been a few, but not that many

2) PP is nowhere near as valuable to our team as Deion Sanders was to any of his.

3) Field position is HUGE, and the risk is certainly worth the potential reward

4) PP should return punts ONLY if he's clearly the best returner. If he's only equal to a few others, then they should do it. I'm hoping Shep emerges as our best returner, because that's more ideal than having your best CB back there. But what's not ideal--and is even stupid--is to be too scared to play the guy who is clearly the best.