Impressive stretch run
SEATTLE – Nate Burleson likes to tell kids to try new things. Experiment. Learn to do as many things as you can because you never know when they’ll help you.
Funny how he ended up taking his own advice. Burleson never figured he’d make his name in the NFL as a return specialist. But he tried it when asked, and now he has made history.
Burleson, the Seahawks’ kickoff and punt returner whose natural position is wide receiver, is the first player in NFL history to return three punts for 90 or more yards for touchdowns.
Who would have thought that he would be the Seahawks’ leader in touchdowns this season with five through eight games, two of those on a kickoff return and punt return?
“Having so much success as a returner is shocking to me,” Burleson said. “I think a lot of it has to do with the guys around me, the scheme, the coaches. I think that kind of grounds me a little bit knowing that it’s not me doing it by myself.”
True, but there is certainly some individual skill involved. Fearlessness, too. Catching a punt or kickoff while knowing 11 opposing players are running full speed to deliver a ferocious hit isn’t for everyone.
Burleson has found a way to avoid getting drilled, employing a quick first step as soon as he fields the kick. Then, with a block or two and the speed to get around people, he can make something out of seemingly nothing. One touchdown makes teams aware of you. After two, they respect you enough to kick the ball away from you.
“We went through the same thing when we played the Bears with (Devin) Hester. It changes your whole deal,” Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said. “You get a return guy that you’re afraid of and can take it the distance, you have decisions to make. … It’s a huge, very important thing, if you are fortunate to have one of those great return guys.”
But Holmgren has decisions to make, too. Does he allow Burleson free reign to run back anything he catches, or are there limitations? Does Burleson’s ability to take one the distance change Holmgren’s approach toward the return game?
“Not really,” Holmgren said. “I love the fact he is capable of doing that, but if you’re playing the odds, more often than not that one bites you just a little bit.”
That could have been the case last week against Cleveland, when Burleson ran back a punt 94 yards for a touchdown. Typically, Holmgren and special-teams coach Bruce DeHaven prefer that any punt that goes beyond the 10-yard line should be avoided so it can perhaps bounce into the end zone for a touchback.
“We still need to work a little more on the decision-making,” DeHaven said, “but (Burleson is) one of the few guys I’ve ever seen that can sometimes overcome some bad decisions back there, and I say that with a smile.”
Burleson wasn’t brought to Seattle as a free agent in 2006 to be a return specialist. He was an up-and-coming receiver with Minnesota, but became the odd man out in a rotation that included Darrell Jackson, Bobby Engram, Deion Branch and D.J. Hackett.
Burleson needed a niche, and the Seahawks asked him to return kicks about midway through last season. As a result, Burleson was named a Pro Bowl alternate, and he is still getting time as receiver because of recent injuries to Hackett and Branch.
“I’d like to just throw him a couple more hitch routes and see if he can take those for 80 yards,” quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. “That’d be the easy way to do it. The return game in general has really helped the offense out and helped me out, so we’re really thankful for that.”
Burleson doesn’t have the freedom to run with every punt. But, as he says, his light is always on yellow.
“You got to be conscious, man. Secure the ball first,” he said. “Hopefully, if I get a couple of more returns, I’ll see that green light. But right now, safety first.”
Burleson seems humbled by what he’s done.
“I don’t think I’m that special,” he said, “but at the same time, I know if I touch it there’s a chance.”