The NFL changed their kickoff rules yet again this offseason, adopting the hybrid kickoff model that is intended to make kickoffs an exciting play again while keeping player safety in mind. One of the biggest changes is that a touchback will bring the ball out to the 30-yard line instead of the 25, which had been the case previously. Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio believes that despite the rule change, we’re still going to see an abundance of kickoffs. Florio speculated that by the trade deadline, at least half the teams in the league will opt to just kick the ball out of the end zone, and it could potentially happen right at the start of the season.
“When the average field position is gonna be the 28 or the 29, just take the 30. Take the 30 and be done with it. I think a lot of coaches, especially defensive coaches, are going to feel that way. Take the 30 and be done with it. I said half the league by the trade deadline, it could be a lot of the league right out of the gate says, screw this. I’m not gonna be the guinea pig,” Florio said on PFT PM.
The Steelers went out and signed Cordarelle Patterson, one of the more prolific kick returners in NFL history after the rule was announced, and if teams don’t kick to him, the Steelers will at least get decent starting field position at their 30. Still, the potential for a big return and the excitement of what kickoffs can be would make it frustrating from a fan perspective if teams decided to just take the touchback.
But obviously, NFL coaches have jobs to keep and games to win, and unlike the league office, they’re less concerned with the excitement aspect of kickoffs. The kicking team wants to prevent the receiving team from having good field position, and while the 30 is five yards better than it has been in the past, they eliminate the possibility of a big return and keep things manageable. It’s realistic to expect that kicking the ball out of the end zone could become commonplace, especially if teams see an uptick in return yardage against them and they’re routinely in worse field position than a touchback would be.
It’ll be interesting to see how the NFL handles the kickoff if touchbacks again become the norm and if the rule will continue to change or evolve. But the new kickoff is going to be one of the more fascinating aspects of the 2024 season, and each team will likely have their own ways of approaching it, and it could be fun to watch it all play out.
