That's no accident. Every club must have a core group of solid special-teams players. We carried an active roster of 45 players into the game against Washington, and 36 of those players participated in at least two special-teams plays. We had nine players participate in 12 or more special-teams plays. That's our core.
Special teams go way beyond the punter, the kicker, and the return man.
Derrick Mason relies heavily on 10 guys on every kickoff or punt return. Derrick gets the game ball and the credit for the touchdown, but he couldn't have done it without guys like Keith Bulluck and Aric Morris and Rodney Thomas and Frank Chamberlin . Yet it's easy to overlook their efforts. One of the hardest things about special teams is that your core group of players is going to change every year. Some guys leave as free agents, others get injured.