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Covering kicks in the NFL isn't easy, and it's not for everyone.

Get up to top speed, get past a block, create an angle to the ball, get there and make a tackle—in the open field—against some of the best athletes in the league?

This stuff is hard, it's physical, it's violent, it's extremely fast and it's even a little dirty at times—with high-speed collisions that suck the life right out of your body on impact.

Even the top guys, the elite coverage men in the league, get blasted at times, blown up and tossed around a bit. Hey, if you cover kickoffs and punts in the NFL, that's how it works.

"I've been slammed on many occasions, choked out many occasions," Arizona Cardinals special teams star Justin Bethel told Bleacher Report recently. "It's part of the job."

Bethel is a former sixth-round pick out of Presbyterian College who has thrived on coverage units. The 6'0", 190-pound cornerback could see some more time in the secondary this season for the Cardinals, but he has made a name for himself with the game speed and ability to make plays he's shown on kick coverage in his first three seasons.

Bethel ran a 4.58-second 40-yard dash at the combine in 2012, but he plays around a 4.4-4.45 clip on the tape because he understands return schemes, utilizes his technique to defeat blocks and knows how to cut an angle to the ball.

A student of the game, Bethel leans on his film study to identify matchups, target weaknesses in his opponents and study the return schemes he will see on game day.

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No different than offense or defense, special teams prep in the NFL includes install meetings, on-the-field prep and hours of tape study to get ready for the next opponent. It's much more than just running down the field as fast as you can. That doesn't get you anywhere versus pro ball players.

There is technique involved, toughness, a specific skill set that caters to the kicking game itself. These guys have to accelerate, decelerate, use their hands, run through contact, create positive angles, play with vision, show open-field ability and finish tackles at full speed.

"I don't think people understand how hard it is to make a tackle when you are running full speed at a guy standing still," Bethel said. "He sees you, and he has the ability to make a good move on you. A lot of those guys are tremendous athletes, and they are really quick guys who can make moves. It takes a lot to be able to go down there and make plays."

Bethel gets this, and that's why he's a young star in the kicking game—elected to the Pro Bowl as a special teamer the last two seasons.

"You gotta be willing to be coachable, have the want to to go out there and play special teams," Bethel said. "It's just that drive of wanting to go out there and do it. If you have that mindset of, 'OK, I'm about go to out here and do this, and I'm going to go dominate,' you can be a great special teams player."

Bethel often sees double-teams on the outside as a gunner on punt coverage, and the drill doesn't change when he lines up to cover a kickoff. Opposing clubs game-plan for him, specifically working to eliminate him from the equation—the ultimate sign of respect in the NFL.

"I've gotten doubled on kickoffs, punts, sometimes I have a third person back waiting for me," Bethel said. "I take that as a privilege and an a honor. It shows that they think highly enough of me that I can be double-teamed. While they're doing, that it's giving another opening for someone else on the squad to go out and make a play."

Here's an example of Bethel working against a double-team on punt coverage from the "gunner" position versus the Kansas City Chiefs. In this GIF, check out Bethel (bottom of the screen) as he sets up the "vice" at the snap to get down the field and make a play on returner De'Anthony Thomas:

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No different than a wide receiver beating press coverage, Bethel showcases his smooth footwork at the line of scrimmage, splits the double-team and then uses his hands to create leverage versus the Chiefs' Marcus Cooper. That allows Bethel to keep Cooper away from his frame and fight through the contact (or the hold) to finish this play.

While many young players in the NFL have their eyes set on being a starter on offense or defense and fail to grasp the importance of covering kicks, guys like Bethel have run with it, accepted the role and produced numbers as they develop. That makes you "irreplaceable" on the roster, a key player in the eyes of coaches and management.

Former NFL safety and linebacker Coy Wire played nine seasons in the league and contributed as a core guy on special teams. He acknowledged that covering kicks isn't high on everyone's list when they come into the NFL, but talked about the importance of adapting to a new role as a pro.

"Most of the guys who star on special teams in the NFL never played a down of it in their college career. So, you have to be like a chameleon and adapt to the new circumstance," Wire said. "Every special teams player wishes they were a full-time starter in the NFL. But to truly buy into the special teams units and excel on them, you have to put your ego aside and embrace the new role that you play for your team."

Veteran linebacker Lorenzo Alexander, a teammate of Bethel's in Arizona and a former special teams Pro Bowler himself, has made a career out of covering kicks. He's a true example of how important special teams talent is to the NFL.

Entering his 11th season, Alexander is still one of the top matchup issues for opposing teams given his strength and size in the kicking game. How does he do it? It starts with a professional approach to using his skill set and the tape in order to master his craft as a top-tier coverage man.

"Taking whatever tools you have to your advantage, whether that's strength, whether that's speed or a combination of both of them and creating mismatches versus your opponent," Alexander said. "Studying the scheme, what do they like to do, and then certain tendencies and tells that gives the play away. I may be able to cheat my angle or take an educated risk and go and make a play."

Alexander knows the importance of playing fast and without fear on coverage units. That's allowed him to rack up numbers in the kicking game during his career and stand out as one of the NFL's most highly respected special teamers over the last decade.

He's taken hits, dished out his own and sacrificed his body to attack special teams at full speed.

John Bazemore/Associated Press

"A lot of guys are so worried about getting blown up, then they slow down. If you play the game long enough, you are going to get hit," Alexander said. "My thing is: I'm going to get you more times than you get me. And you do that being prepared just like offense or defense, understanding your opponent, his weaknesses and the scheme that's going to allow you to play fast and more confident."

In speaking with both Bethel and Alexander, and looking back on my experience covering kicks in the league, the impact special teams has on the outcome of a game, or even a season, is often overlooked. With so much focus on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, the kicking game—and the players who make a living on these units—can get lost in the shuffle.

However, all it takes is one big play to remind us all just how much value there is with coverage and return units.

You want to flip the field, pin a team deep or create scoring opportunities? Then get a core group of guys—special teams demons—who can fly down the field, win with technique, understand scheme and make plays on Sundays. Players that have the desire to perform in the kicking game and are willing to absorb high-speed collisions to win games.

"The game has three phases, and special teams is a third of the game," Bethel said. "It's definitely an important part and something that can flip the game at an instant."

Seven-year NFL veteran Matt Bowen is an NFL National Lead Writer for Bleacher Report.

Follow @MattBowen41