Top 5 Kick Returners in Eagles History

Ray Didinger will be running a series of rankings in which he will give that top five Eagles players at every position in history. This is both Kick off and punt returners.

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1. Timmy Brown (1960-67) – A dazzling open-field runner, Brown still holds the team record for the most touchdowns on kickoff returns (five). He was the first player in NFL history to return two kickoffs for touchdowns in the same game, a 24-23 win over Dallas in 1966. He also holds the Eagles’ record for the longest kickoff return, 105 yards against Cleveland in 1961.

Brown attended Ball State and was drafted by Green Bay, but coach Vince Lombardi made one of his few personnel mistakes when he released Brown. The Eagles claimed Brown, and he was part of the 1960 team that defeated Lombardi’s Packers in the NFL championship game.

2. Brian Mitchell (2000-02) – Played a decade in Washington before signing with the Eagles as a free agent in 2000. The move to Philadelphia seemed to revitalize Mitchell, who gave the Eagles special teams an enormous lift. He played only three seasons with the Eagles, but he set the club record for punt return yardage (1,369), and he is second to Brown in kickoff return yardage (3,311).

In 2002, Mitchell averaged 12.3 yards on punt returns and 27.0 yards on kickoff returns, both rank among the top 10 seasons in franchise history. He had two touchdowns on punt returns and two on kickoffs. He retired as the NFL’s all-time leader in combined kick return yardage.

3. Brian Westbrook (2002-) – Although he has seen less special teams duty than the other players on this list, Westbrook has to make it on his sheer explosiveness. He has returned only 39 punts in his career, but he broke two for touchdowns, including the memorable 84 yarder against the New York Giants in 2003. That return (with 1:34 remaining) gave the Eagles a 14-10 victory and probably saved their season.

For the ’03 season, Westbrook had 20 punt returns for 306 yards and two touchdowns. The second touchdown was an 81-yard score against San Francisco. His 15.3-yard punt return average was the best in the league that season.

4. Vai Sikahema (1992-93) – Sikahema had a fine career as a return specialist in the NFL, but he had his best season in 1992 when he signed as a free agent with the Eagles. He had a career-high 12.6-yard average on punt returns and ranked third in the NFL. Fearless and
sure-handed, he returned 40 punts that season with only 10 fair catches.

Sikahema is best remembered for his 87-yard touchdown return against the Giants, which he celebrated by punching out the goalpost in the Meadowlands end zone. It is the longest punt return in Eagles history, and it was the first punt return touchdown for the team in six years.

5. Al Nelson (1965-73) – Nelson was a starting cornerback – and a good one – for the Eagles, but he was a star running back at the University of Cincinnati. Nelson was able to demonstrate that running ability on special teams as he averaged 26.0 yards on 101 career kickoff returns, fourth best in franchise history.

Nelson holds the team record for highest kickoff return average for a season: 29.1 yards on 25 returns in 1972. He also returned two missed field-goal attempts for touchdowns – 101 yards against Dallas in 1971 and 100 yards against Cleveland in 1966.