10-28-2021, 09:19 PM
The Vikings on Sunday night will roll out their third kickoff returner in seven games. Special-team coordinator Ryan Ficken said Thursday that rookie running back Kene Nwangwu will return kicks against Dallas at U.S. Bank Stadium. Nwangwu will make his NFL debut after spending the first six games on injured reserve with a knee injury.
Rookie wide receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette returned kickoffs in the first three games before he suffered a toe injury, although he has since recovered. The Vikings (3-3) then went to running back Ameer Abdullah before he was released last week and signed with Carolina.
“Obviously his speed, how electric he is with that,’’ Ficken said of what he likes about Nwangwu, a fourth-round pick from Iowa State. “But the way he handles himself in pressure situations, as much as we could in practice, just excited to see him go out there and kind of cut it loose a little bit.”
Smith-Marsette, a fifth-round pick from Iowa, averaged just 20.8 yards on his four returns Abdullah averaged 23.1 on seven returns. Abdullah had a 45-yard return, his longest in four Vikings seasons, in his final game with them on Oct. 17 at Carolina.
Ficken is hoping the Vikings eventually will have stability with who returns kickoffs. In addition to Nwangwu and Smith-Marsette, they also have wide receiver K.J. Osborn, who returned 14 kickoffs for a 21.6 yard average in 2020 but doesn’t have a return this season.
“That’s what we’re trying to build,’’ Ficken said. “We have two young guys, two rookies, so we’re trying to figure out what’s best for them and what’s best for this team. And right now it’s Kene.”
https://www.twincities.com/2021/10/28/vi...nfl-debut/
Rookie wide receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette returned kickoffs in the first three games before he suffered a toe injury, although he has since recovered. The Vikings (3-3) then went to running back Ameer Abdullah before he was released last week and signed with Carolina.
“Obviously his speed, how electric he is with that,’’ Ficken said of what he likes about Nwangwu, a fourth-round pick from Iowa State. “But the way he handles himself in pressure situations, as much as we could in practice, just excited to see him go out there and kind of cut it loose a little bit.”
Smith-Marsette, a fifth-round pick from Iowa, averaged just 20.8 yards on his four returns Abdullah averaged 23.1 on seven returns. Abdullah had a 45-yard return, his longest in four Vikings seasons, in his final game with them on Oct. 17 at Carolina.
Ficken is hoping the Vikings eventually will have stability with who returns kickoffs. In addition to Nwangwu and Smith-Marsette, they also have wide receiver K.J. Osborn, who returned 14 kickoffs for a 21.6 yard average in 2020 but doesn’t have a return this season.
“That’s what we’re trying to build,’’ Ficken said. “We have two young guys, two rookies, so we’re trying to figure out what’s best for them and what’s best for this team. And right now it’s Kene.”
https://www.twincities.com/2021/10/28/vi...nfl-debut/
![[Image: forrest-gump-running.gif]](https://c.tenor.com/4VCAJKuP62EAAAAd/forrest-gump-running.gif)
