Patterson: NFL eliminating special teams would take the ‘fun out of the game’

The Minnesota Vikings wide receiver and All-Pro kick returner recently shared the joy he experiences as one of the NFL’s top special teams performers.

Prior to the 2016 season, many just associated Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson with his ability to make magic happen on special teams as a kick returner. But this year, Patterson became an integral part of the Vikings offense once again as a pass catcher and ended the season with a career high 52 receptions.

But even though he had success as a receiver in 2016, Patterson still wants to assure everyone how much he still enjoys taking a kickoff and returning it all the way back the other way for a touchdown.

In a recent article published by The Players’ Tribune, the Minnesota wide receiver expressed the excitement that playing on special teams has given him since entering the NFL back in 2013.

"“I love special teams, I really do. I don’t care what anybody else says. They give me so much joy. There’s some talk of doing away with them, and I hate the thought of that. You know I hate the thought of that. Doing away with special teams would take so much fun out of the game.I love playing receiver, but I love returning kicks.”"

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Despite his recent success outside of the special teams unit, Patterson’s ability on kick returns is somewhat of a rarity in the league today. It is also something that could make him a lot of money this offseason in free-agency.