During discussions at the league’s annual meeting, the NFL owners approved a restructure of the kickoff rule on Tuesday. The revamped format is geared towards lowering concussion rates, marking the most significant rule shift in the NFL over the last decade. It will go into effect for one year on a trial basis and essentially, the kicking and return units will move downfield in the revitalized rule to minimize collisions. The plan will need to be re-approved next year, or the NFL will revert to the previous kickoff rules.
“I’m looking forward to having it back in the game,” said Buccaneers’ General Manager Jason Licht. “It’s going to be interesting how that looks. Nobody really knows exactly how that’s going to look, but it will be interesting to have a play that kind of matters back in the game.”
During the 2024 season, kickers will continue to kick from the 35-yard line, but the other 10 players on the kickoff unit will line up at the receiving team’s 40-yard line. At least nine members of the return team will line up in a zone between the 35- and 30-yard lines. Up to two returners can line up in a landing zone between the goal line and the 20-yard line. No players besides the kicker and returner (s) can move until the ball hits the ground or hits a player inside the landing zone. Under the new rule, players will not be going full speed when they crash into one another, which has generated a plethora of injuries in the past and a decrease in returns. In addition, no fair catches will be allowed under the iteration. The proposal follows the structure of the XFL version with a slight shift in where the players are aligned. NFL special teams coaches who participated in designing the NFL version of this format are hoping for an increased return rate in 2024.
The Special Teams group proposed the following ideas as an alternative to the current kickoff play:
- The ball is kicked from the A35 yard line (same as current rule)
- Safety kicks would be from A20 yard line (same as current rule)
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