The Packers Should Look To UFL For Potential Returners

Putting it lightly, it would be really neat if the Green Bay Packers were better at special teams.

In 2025 alone, Packers fans were the opposite of treated to a showing of almost all possible special teams blunders. There were blocked kicks, a kick blocked and returned, missed kicks, missed tackles, a failed onside kick, and an inability to make the correct decisions about returner options.

Special teams clearly isn't a priority in Green Bay. The storied franchise needs to change that if it wants the claim that it's doing everything to win a Super Bowl to be more than idle chatter.

To stay solution-oriented, let's tackle one problem at a time, starting with the return game.

The Packers had an All-Pro kick returner on the roster, and he wasn't returning kicks. Punt returner was a motley crew of starting wide receivers ill-suited for the role, and Josh Jacobs returned a kick for the first time since college in the playoffs.

What if, instead, the Packers committed to finding a returner not only suited to the role but also with experience? What if there was some sort of spring league where players could play meaningful, competitive football snaps and then bring those arcane skill sets to the Green Bay Packers?

That's right, the Packers should look to the United Football League (a combination of the former XFL and USFL) to find return specialists.

Since the two biggest spring leagues merged for the 2024 season, spring football is gaining traction every year and establishing that it's here to stay. It seeks to coexist with the NFL, has rules established by seasoned NFL officials, and offers players a chance to earn meaningful snaps outside the NFL's usual training periods. It's a boon for players who need extra coaching and teams looking for alternate sources of player acquisition.

Former UFL players are earning NFL roster spots in training camp, with many playing meaningful snaps. It's an especially good place to look for core special-teamers.

Green Bay punter Daniel Whelan is one of the few special-teams bright spots. He played for the DC Defenders in 2023 and was named All-XFL before joining the Packers.

For the 2024 season, the NFL adopted the UFL's kickoff-return rules, which the NFL refined last year. It looks like the league intends to keep at least some version of this system in place as it tries to make kickoffs safer and more engaging. That means that UFL return specialists bring expertise with these new rules. Meanwhile, rookies, who often earn return jobs as they work their way up the roster, are used to college's full-speed kickoff rules. Considering some teams still haven't fully adapted to the new rules, it's just one less plate to juggle.

We need only to look at a division rival to see a team that successfully found a return man from the UFL.

The Detroit Lions have a former UFL star, kicker Jake Bates, who the Packers were interested in. They also have former St. Louis Battlehawks running back Jacob Saylors, who has become the team's primary kick returner, with solid results.

Saylors played just eight snaps on offense but tallied the ninth-most kick return yards, with 897 yards on 33 returns. He was a solid addition for the Lions and earned a contract extension following the season.

While the Packers haven't historically liked to keep players just for special teams play, one positive change under Rich Bisaccia is a loosening of that trend. It's still imperfect, and Matt LaFleur is often loath to risk his starters on special teams. However, the Packers can consider using a roster spot on a teams player.

When the Packers brought Mecole Hardman in last season, it was clearly with the intent of using him as a returner first and a receiver second. It didn't work out, and Hardman didn't look great in either role during training camp and the preseason, but it showed at least a willingness to keep trying a dedicated returner.

One reason the Packers struggle with punt returners specifically is that LaFleur's offense doesn't use the smaller wide receivers with the prototypical punt-returner build. It's not a specialty that the coaching staff will usually make a roster spot for. But if the Packers want to buck their special teams albatross, they need to embrace new strategies.

It would go against type if the Packers signed, for example, 27-year-old Jahcour Pearson, who led the UFL with 295 punt return yards. Pearson is 5'7”, 178 lbs., and older than any other wide receiver on the roster. He's not the type of player Green Bay typically even glances at.

The Packers also don't seem to glance at having good special teams, so maybe they should revisit the idea. And it doesn't have to be Pearson, though many other top returners will have similar builds.

Field position matters, as does complementary football. A player built like Pearson might not have a major role on offense, but he could elevate one of the team's biggest question marks. And a creative offensive playcaller like Matt LaFleur should be able to find ways to get a type like Pearson involved. Surely, it could be better than a Matthew Golden jet sweep, no?

By signing LaFleur to an extension, the Packers still believe their best hope of reaching a Super Bowl in the immediate future is under him. LaFleur needs to do a tough self-scouting to improve areas of the game where he's less adept, including his philosophy on special teams. It's not their usual MO, but looking to the UFL for a trained return specialist is worth the roster spot.