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鈥?Pharoh Cooper of the Los Angeles Rams and Kansas City’s Tyreek Hill split 10 of the 11 first-place votes in The Associated Press kick returner rankings. The overall tally wasn’t nearly that close.Cooper finished with 102 points Josh Tomlin Cleveland Indians Jersey , 43 ahead of the Chiefs’ speedy multipurpose man because Hill was left off two ballots and barely made three others on the voting panel that includes Hall of Fame receiver James Lofton and 10 AP pro football writers.Hill’s diminished role 鈥?he is no longer returning kickoffs and isn’t in the top 10 in average yards on punt returns 鈥?was the difference. The second-year player finished fourth with 59 points, also behind a pair of rookies in runner-up Jamal Agnew of Detroit and Dallas’ Ryan Switzer.“For sheer excitement, he’d be No. 1,” wrote AP lead NFL writer Barry Wilner, who is based in New York. “But the Chiefs hardly use him on returns the way they once did. He has only an 8.8-yard average on punt runbacks.”The surprising Rams could be part of the reason Cooper was one of just two returners named on all 11 ballots (Switzer was the other). LA leads the NFC West and at 9-4 has clinched its first winning season since 2003.Cooper, also a second-year man, had one of just three kickoff returns for touchdowns in the NFL going into Week 15, a 103-yarder in a 27-17 win at AFC South-leading Jacksonville. His 28.3-yard average on kickoff returns leads the league, and he has a solid 11.9-yard average on punt returns.“Cooper has been a dynamic presence on special teams for the Rams, returning both kickoffs and punts, and establishing himself as a threat in both cases,” New York-based AP writer Dennis Waszak wrote.“Big plays and a difference-maker,” wrote Lofton. Cooper was first or second on 10 of the 11 ballots.Hill figures to get a few nominations for NFL play of the year 鈥?but it wasn’t on special teams. The 5-foot-10 dynamo stunned the Cowboys with a touchdown on the final play of the first half in a game Kansas City lost.The Chiefs were on their 44 with 2 seconds left before halftime when Hill caught a short pass from Alex Smith with most of the Dallas defense playing near the goal line. With three blockers in front, Hill motored around Orlando Scandrick at the 25, cut behind two blocks from Demarcus Robinson inside the 10 and sidestepped linebacker Anthony Hitchens to finish the stunning TD.“He’s as special a guy as I’ve ever seen in person Reggie Jackson Jersey ,” said Jets special teams coordinator Brant Boyer, who worked out Hill before last year’s draft. “There is not a guy with more juice than that guy. He’s a special, special athlete and his burst, his acceleration, his patience, he has it all.”Agnew, a fifth-round pick, is the only player with two returns for touchdowns this season 鈥?both on punts. He got the other first-place vote and had 68 points to Switzer’s 60.“The rookie from San Diego leads the league in punt return average (16.8 yards), longest runback (88 yards) and touchdowns (two), so he’s an easy pick,” Wilner wrote of Agnew. “Besides, with the lack of kickoff returns, guys who field punts should get priority.”Switzer finished a somewhat surprising third considering he hadn’t done much before returning a punt 83 yards for a touchdown two weeks ago. It was a pivotal moment in a win over NFC East rival Washington because it gave quarterback Dak Prescott enough time to get the swelling down on a hand injury and not miss any snaps.Tarik Cohen of Chicago finished fifth with 57 points, and Seattle’s Tyler Lockett was sixth.“Cohen handles both kicks and punts and deserves to make this list on the 61-yard punt return for a TD against San Francisco, much less everything he’s done http://www.49ersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-weston-richburg-jersey ,” wrote San Francisco-based AP writer Josh Dubow.Lockett was named on the second-most ballots 鈥?10.“He hasn’t scored since his rookie year in 2015, but his ability to handle both punts and kickoffs among the league’s best is a rare skill,” AP’s Minnesota-based Dave Campbell wrote.Oakland’s Cordarrelle Patterson was seventh, followed by New England’s Dion Lewis, Tennessee’s Adoree’ Jackson and Baltimore’s Michael Campanaro to round out the top 10.EDITOR’S NOTE 鈥?The Associated Press is ranking the top 10 players at a different position every week of the NFL season, based on votes by Pro Football Hall of Famer James Lofton and AP football writers Simmi Buttar, Dave Campbell, Schuyler Dixon, Josh Dubow, Howard Fendrich, Rob Maaddi, Arnie Stapleton, Teresa M. Walker, Dennis Waszak Jr. and Barry Wilner. This feature is sent on Fridays. Veteran receivers Brandon Tate and Michael Floyd joined practice at New Orleans Saints training camp on Wednesday, bolstering a receiver corps thinned by injuries and adding to the mix of players competing in the return game.

New Orleans also has activated veteran tight end Michael Hoomanawanui Adrian Clayborn Jersey Patriots , who began training camp on the physically unable to perform list.

The 30-year-old Tate played in 13 games for Buffalo last season, when his most significant contributions came in the return game. He returned 28 kickoffs for 548 yards and 20 punts for 193 yards.

”He had a good workout. We’re familiar with the player, just with his experience,” coach Sean Payton said of Tate, who also has played for New England and Cincinnati during his nine-year career. ”We’ll have a chance to take a look at him both in the punt and kick return game, and then also at receiver.”

Payton has described competition for return roles as ”wide open.”

”Our return game is kind of like `The Bachelor’ right now,” Payton said recently, referring to the popular reality TV series. ”We have about 12 contestants all with roses. We don’t know who our returner is going to be. And if she doesn’t like any of them, we will bring in more.

”They have to do anything they can to become the returner. … Limousine, whatever. Paris.”

Payton has been emphasizing kickoff coverage and return games this training camp because of NFL rules changes for such plays affecting how teams can line up – and block- in an effort to reduce injurious, higher-speed collisions.

Payton said the return game is not necessarily causing him more anxiety than usual, but stressed, ”We just want to be better in that area.”

Meanwhile, Payton said he wants to see how a receiver with Floyd’s skill set and 6-foot-3 frame fits New Orleans’ offense, which has thrived in the past with big receiving targets such as the 6-4 Marques Colston Cheap Royce Freeman Jersey , who retired after the 2015 season as the club’s career leader in receiving.

Floyd is ”someone that’s big and we think we’ve got a good vision for what his strengths are,” Payton said.

The 28-year-old Floyd played for Minnesota last season, but caught only 10 passes for 78 yards in 11 games after serving a four-game suspension by the NFL for using a banned substance.

Floyd was among Arizona’s premier receivers earlier in his career, but was released by the club following a 2016 drunken driving arrest. Payton indicated Floyd would not have much room for error off the field.

”Obviously, when we bring players in, they understand the expectations,” Payton said. ”He’s someone that I’m sure understands it.”

The decisions to bring in new receivers this week came in part because three who were on the active roster to open camp are injured.

Travin Dural, a second-year pro out of LSU, is going on injured reserve. Payton says injured undrafted rookies Josh Smith and Eldridge Massington have been waived.

”It’s a hard position group to be in camp with, with a lot of guys not practicing,” Payton said. ”That’s just how it is.”

The Saints also have added veteran offensive guard Don Barclay, who played in three games for Detroit last season and started 24 games with Green Bay over five seasons.

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