NFL owners approve new kickoff rule. Here is video of how it will look
NFL owners on Tuesday approved a radical change to the league’s kickoff rules, according to multiple reports.
That means the Chiefs will be taking part in the very first new-look kickoff in NFL history. As the defending Super Bowl champions, the Chiefs once again will play host to the NFL Kickoff Game.
It will begin with a kickoff that will look like this:
Normally I hate Special Teams talk. But the new kickoff returns do intrigue me. The two firing squads will be lined up at the receiving team’s 35 and 40 yard lines, not the 30 and 35 yard lines like in these XFL videos. But still. Imagine De’Von Achane as the return man. pic.twitter.com/1IWth8EotS
— Chris Kouffman (@ckparrot) March 26, 2024
The Competition Committee discussed adopting a version of the #XFL kickoff. There could be a proposal for a vote in March. The #NFL wants to keep the return in the game (as there was a decline in returns), while making the play safer.
(Per @judybattista)pic.twitter.com/sJ8Nh2KF2d— The Sports Fellow (@SportsFellow_) February 25, 2024
Owners approved the change at the NFL’s annual league meetings in Orlando, Florida, as a way to protect players and because there had been a reduction in the number of returns last season.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid explained Monday why he was in favor of the kickoff change.
In Super Bowl LVIII, there were no kickoff returns because the Chiefs’ Harrison Butker and 49ers’ Jake Moody boomed kicks that resulted in touchbacks.
Under the new rule, the kickoff would remain at the 35-yard line, but the kicker’s 10 teammates would be lined up at the opponent’s 40-yard line.
“The receiving team would line up with at least seven players in a ‘set up zone,’ a 5-yard area between their own 35- and 30-yard lines, and a maximum of two returners are permitted to line up in the landing zone,” the NFL wrote on its website.
Other than the kicker and returners, players can’t move until the ball is fielded..
Kicking off a new era: Owners just approved the NFL Hybrid Kickoff rule, per source.
After years of tweaks turned one of the game’s most exciting moments into a “dead, ceremonial play”, the league hopes this overhaul will yield what it wants: fewer injuries and more returns. pic.twitter.com/jHLAjZJm0z— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 26, 2024
A few other things to know about the new rule:
If the kickoff doesn’t make it past the return team’s 20-yard line, the ball is considered out of bounds, CBS Sports reported. The return team takes possession at its own 40-yard line. If the ball is actually kicked out of bounds, the receiving team will get the ball at its own 40 or the spot where the ball went out of bounds.
If the ball is kicked into the end zone on the fly, it’s a touchback and the receiving team gets the ball at its own 30-yard line, CBS said. This will also be true if the ball is kicked out of the end zone.
Onside kicks will be allowed once the fourth quarter begins but teams would have to announce they are trying it, per NFL reporter Dov Kleiman. Current onside kick rules would apply.
