2019 Atlanta Falcons Roster Review: Return Specialist
Catching a punt with his back nearly facing the oncoming Carolina Panther defenders, Kenjon Barner spun in a semicircle and accelerated right.
He quickly cut left and exploded toward the sideline, picking up his blockers and allowing them to escort him to the end zone. Seventy-eight yard touchdown.
That Week 11 play, on Nov. 17, 2019, was the first kick or punt return score by a Falcon since 2014, when Devin Hester took a punt to the house.
Barner shined during his lone season in Atlanta. He handed both the kickoff and punt return duties, finishing with 17 kick returns for 406 yards and 35 punt returns for 267 yards and a touchdown. It was the best special teams season of his career.
But now, after he signed a one-year deal last spring, Barner will hit the free agent market again. He made $850,000 last season and is expected to command about the same in 2020.
A running back when not bringing back kicks, the 30-year-old Barner has always relied on his speed. He ran a 4.52-second 40-yard dash at the 2013 NFL Combine and hasn’t lost much, if any, of that burst.
While he doesn’t often line up in the backfield, Barner has proven to be an effective runner when called upon. Last season, he rushed four times for 28 yards. In his career, he has 100 carries for 416 yards and three touchdowns.
The only negative aspect of Barner’s 2019 season was, he fumbled a career-high four times. He recovered three of his own miscues, but his ball security is something to watch going forward.
If the Falcons allow Barner to walk in free agency, they have a couple of options for the return game in 2020.
It isn’t difficult to find a quality return man for cheap, as Atlanta did with Barner last offseason. The Falcons could take the same route this year and hope for similar production.
They could turn to the NFL Draft and use a late-round pick on a player with the potential to return kicks, like Western Michigan’s LeVante Bellamy or Virginia Tech’s Deshawn McClease. Both players returned kickoffs at some point in their college careers.
Or Atlanta could stay in-house. Its options include players like Olamide Zaccheaus and Christian Blake, both of whom returned kickoffs in college, and Russell Gage.
In all likelihood, the Falcons will bring back Kenjon Barner.
His punt return yards ranked fourth out of all returners in 2019, and he was solid when returning kickoffs.
Why do a 180-degree turn at a position when it will be cheap to maintain their current success?
