Almost three years ago, a promising future on the field was cut short when Packers running back Jonathan Franklin suffered a neck injury on an opening kick return against the visiting Minnesota Vikings. He never played another snap or ran back another kickoff in the NFL. Franklin was tacked onto the list of players in Green Bay to suffer career-ending injuries - a list with prominent players such as Sterling Sharpe, Jermichael Finley, Nick Collins and unfortunately, many more.
This goes to show that kickoff returns are indeed dangerous. A player running head-on into opposing special teams coverage and weaving his way through blocks like a Spartan charging into the Battle of Thermopylae.