NFL
Posted on May 29, 2024
Updated May 29, 2024 at 11:27 am ET
Upcoming special teams rule changes have the Jets turning to a former star returner.
The Jets are signing running back/return specialist Tarik Cohen, who missed the last three seasons due to injuries, to a one-year contract, according to KeynoteUSA.
Cohen, 28, last played in 2020 for the Bears when he logged three games, but earned First Team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors in 2018 as a return specialist.
Tarik Cohen during a 2018 game against the Giants. Paul J. Bereswill
Jets coach Robert Saleh responded with a punch when asked about Cohen on Wednesday.
“Yes,” Saleh said, laughing. “Tarik, an explosive playmaker, is starting to recover. With the new kickoff rules and these kick returners, they will touch the ball over 100 times a year, which is significant, at least that’s what we anticipate. And a guy like him, he’s still young, obviously coming off of his injuries, and we’re excited to have him on board.”
Cohen established himself as a special teams weapon and receiver during his active time with the Bears from 2017 to 2020 before injuries derailed his career.
He tore his ACL early in the 2020 season and then missed the entire 2021 season while recovering.
Cohen attempted to return in 2022 only to suffer a ruptured Achilles tendon that left him unconscious for the entire season.
Robert Saleh is happy to have Tarik Cohen on board. @nyjets/X
He was signed to the Panthers’ practice squad last September, but a hamstring injury sidelined him and he never played a snap for Carolina.
The Jets now hope that Cohen’s injuries are a thing of the past and that he can provide a boost to special teams thanks to upcoming kickoff rule changes for the 2024 season.
Cohen, a fourth-round pick out of North Carolina A&T in the 2017 Draft, led the NFL with 33 punt returns for 411 yards (12.5 yards per return) during his fantastic 2018 season.
Tarik Cohen runs away from a defender in a 2017 game. USA Sports Today
For his career, Cohen averages 10.3 yards per punt return and 20.9 yards per kick return, and scored his only return touchdown on a punt in 2017.
As a running back, Cohen tallied 209 receptions for 1,575 yards and nine touchdowns in his four years with the Bears, including a career-high 725 yards and five receiving touchdowns in 2018.
He could add experience to a room of young running backs.
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