Tom McMahon Talks KJ Hamler's Chances to Win Return Man Job
It's been a long time since the Denver Broncos had a player who brings explosiveness to the punt and kick return game. For years, the Broncos relied on players who were fine at catching the ball, but couldn't do much with it once they did.
The Denver Broncos selected KJ Hamler in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. He brings both explosiveness to his game and plenty of experience as a return man.
Special teams coach Tom McMahon, in a Zoom presser Thursday, said that Hamler has the opportunity to claim the return job.
"What he's done in college, his production, it should naturally carry over into the NFL," McMahon said. "He's got great speed, he can create his own returns."
But McMahon reminded everyone that the NFL game is different from the college game, so it's not a given Hamler will win the job.
"The one thing he's going to have to do is he's going to have to catch a bunch of NFL punts here in the preseason," he said. "They're much different than what you see in college. If we get the ball in his hands, we can expect big things from him, both in the punt return and kick return game."
It's not just Hamler who could be competing for return man duties. Diontae Spencer, who handled the majority of returns last season, showed some promise. Spencer returned 26 punts for 208 yards, with his longest return at 42 yards, and 15 kickoffs for 436 yards, his longest return for 60 yards.
Spencer spent five years in the Canadian Football League, before joining the Pittsburgh Steelers early in 2019. He didn't make the 53-man roster and the Broncos jumped in, claiming him off waivers.
McMahon said that Spencer had to adjust to the NFL style of play. The NFL and CFL differ in terms of how the return game is run, so Spencer took some time to pick up on things. But once he did, McMahon said, you could see the difference.
"The one thing he did is he really studied the punter and the kicker," McMahon said. "He knew where that ball was going to be kicked the last seven or eight games much, much better than he did the first six."
The way McMahon talked about Spencer's growth and ability, it's not hard to figure out that the man who returned punts and kicks in 2019 remains a favorite to win the job.
"I think he can win pre-snap now where he's headed," McMahon said. "He's got courage. He's a rare, small guy that can return kickoffs up the middle. We had a lot of schemes last year where we asked him to return up the middle. He hit it up the middle. The biggest thing he's got to work on now is breaking those tackles."
It won't just be Hamler and Spencer competing for the job. 2020 seventh-round pick Tyree Cleveland has experience in the return game. McMahon noted that Khalfani Muhammad and Trinity Benson, both who spent time on the practice squad last season, got their chances in the preseason last year and will be in the running for the job.
It would certainly be nice for the Broncos to find that player who can consistently return punts and kicks, because that helps the Broncos win the battle of field position — an aspect of the game that often gets overlooked.
But whether it's Hamler, Spencer or somebody else, if the Broncos can find the guy who helps them win the battle of field position, it will only make the team better and more exciting to watch.
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