Competition Committee approved a new rule for kickoffs at the NFL owners meetings. (AP/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
- Competition Committee approves a new rule, injecting elements of the XFL kickoff rules in the NFL for 2024.
- The kickoff rule will be used for one season on a trial basis and be subject to renewal in 2025.
- The proposal needed 24 of 32 votes to pass.
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ORLANDO, Fla. ā Kickoff returns are returning to the NFL.
Team owners on Tuesday approved a new rule that will take what essentially had become āa dead playā and make it an integral part of the game again, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the league hasn’t announced the change.
The major overhaul to special teams ā which has been in the works for years ā takes elements of the kickoff rules used in the XFL and tweaks them for use in the NFL beginning in 2024. The rule will be in play for one season on a trial basis and then be subject to renewal in 2025.
NFL Competition Committee chairman Rich McKay said Monday there was urgency to vote on this rule before the draft because it could impact the way teams structure rosters. There were 1,970 touchbacks on kickoffs last season that now could be returns.
McVay: ‘It’s Good for the Game’
āI think itās good for the game,ā said Rams coach Sean McVay, who is one of three coaches on the eight-member committee. āI think all the intentions are in the right direction, and Iām really appreciative of the time and effort that the special teams coordinators have put in to try to be able to keep this play relevant in our game.ā
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For a standard kickoff, the ball would be kicked from the 35-yard line with the 10 kick coverage players lined up at the opposing 40, with five on each side of the field.
The return team would have at least nine blockers lined up in the āset up zoneā between the 30- and 35-yard line, with at least seven of those players touching the 35. There would be up to two returners allowed inside the 20.
Only the kicker and two returners would be allowed to move until the ball hits the ground or was touched by a returner inside the 20.
Any kick that reaches the end zone in the air can be returned, or the receiving team can opt for a touchback and possession at the 30. Any kick that reaches the end zone in the air and goes out of bounds or out of the end zone also would result in a touchback at the 30.
If a ball hits a returner or the ground before the end zone and goes into the end zone, a touchback would be at the 20 or the play could be returned. Any kick received in the field of play would have to be returned.
āItās a drastic kind of move thatās going to be way different,ā said Ravens coach John Harbaugh, a former special teams coordinator. āIs that the right move at this time? I donāt know. I think thatās to be determined.”
Under current rules, any touchback ā or if a returner calls for a fair catch in the field of play ā results in the receiving team getting the ball at its 25.
The proposal needed 24 of 32 votes to pass.
āIām all for it,ā Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. āYou have 2,000 dead plays. Nobody wants to see that. Itāll add excitement and newness.ā
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