Beyond the visuals of the new NFL kickoff rule changes, perhaps the biggest change will be the people who could now be used on the coverage and return team. Hours before the league got its first look at the new-look kickoffs during last night’s Hall of Fame Game between the Chicago Bears and Houston Texans, Pittsburgh Steelers special teams coordinator Danny Smith was hard at work repping the play at Saint Vincent College.
Most of the players on the coverage and return team were the usual suspects. Linebackers, safeties, a couple of running backs, and some corners out on the edges to contain and offer some speed. But mixed throughout the group were a handful of defensive linemen. On the coverage team, DEs Isaiahh Loudermilk, DeMarvin Leal, and Willington Previlon chased down RB Jaylen Warren and company. NT Keeanu Benton was even out on the “beanie” to signify being part of the coverage team, though he bowed out after a water break and never actually covered a play. On the blocking end, NT Breiden Fehoko received several reps on the front line of the return team.
For Smith, the big guys in the trenches are viable candidates.
“We took the distance out of it,” Smith told reporters via a team-provided transcript of using linemen. “We took the speed and the distance out with all of it, right? So, if we’re just in a five-yard area – me and you are in a five-yard area – who best in the game of football gets off blocks? Defensive linemen do it for a living. Linebackers do it for a living. Tight ends do it on their releases when they’re covered, so they ought to be good at getting off that block.”
Under the previous kickoff rules, covering ground was the key. Sprinting 40 yards before needing to beat the block and make the tackle. Something 98 percent of defensive linemen couldn’t do. There are rare exceptions, and in Pittsburgh, guys like Brett Keisel and Henry Mondeaux covered kicks, but generally, the idea was a non-starter. Now, the coverage and return teams are just 5 yards apart, cutting down space and the need for speed. Now, the play is done in a phone booth, and beating blocks, something all linemen and linebackers must do, is the focus.
Here’s a look at the opening kickoff from last night’s game. Our Ross McCorkle did a great job breaking down that and the rest of the returns for some initial impressions.
“If DeMarvin Leal gets in there and does what I ask him to do, we’re going to block that big man…So, yes, there is a place for them, and it’s my job to see where that place is and play someone according to where they can excel,” Smith said.
Leal and Loudermilk could use special teams to state their case to make the 53-man roster. The two are still battling to secure their roster spot, and if the team only keeps six defensive linemen, assuming they still hang onto offseason signee Dean Lowry, there will be an odd man out. Leal’s had a hot start to training camp though he entered behind Loudermilk, a steadier and more consistent run defender. This year, special teams could serve as a tiebreaker for who makes the roster or, even in the event both do, who gets a helmet on gameday.
Though Thursday practice didn’t show it, will Pittsburgh or any team trot out an offensive lineman? If kick returns are treated like run plays, as many coaches have compared them to, offensive linemen make sense. If they’re asked and trusted to pull in space or get out in front of screen plays, athletic linemen can be asked to block on kicks, too. Mason McCormick could shine in those environments or at least be given the chance to.
Perhaps that’s the most interesting aspect of the change. The numbers may not shift as dramatically as you think. Averages might not spike, and kick-return touchdowns still won’t be common. Last night’s opener hinted at that. Though a small sample size, the Texans averaged 20 yards per kick return on three runbacks, while the Bears averaged 24.8 yards on four tries. No return went longer than 31 yards. Similar numbers are just packaged in a different, more frequent, and hopefully safer look. With some new-looking people on the field, too.
