Admin September 3, 2024
If the preseason is any indication, the NFL’s new “dynamic kickoff” will give fans a little more action this year while easing high-speed hits after players had raced down the field for several yards.
The XFL used the dynamic kickoff setup during its 2020 and 2023 seasons. It moves all the players – except for the kicker – to the receiving team’s end of the field. The kickoff is more like a play from scrimmage than the traditional kick off.
The NFL says of the nearly 300 kickoffs this preseason, 70.5% were returned – up from 54.8% last preseason. In the 2023-24 regular season, that rate fell to 1 in 5, or just over one a game. None of the 13 kickoffs in Super Bowl 58 were returned.
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How NFL teams will set up for kickoffs
The new kickoff rules create a five-yard buffer between all but a few players on the field.
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What is the NFL’s new kickoff rule?
◾ The kicker: The kicker remains on the other half of the field with the ball teed up at the 35-yard line.
◾ The kicking team: The 10 other kicking-team players line up on the receiving team’s 40-yard line.
◾ Two zones: The receiving team is divided into two zones: The setup and landing zones. At least nine members of the receiving team stand in the set up zone, and up to two players can receive the kickoff in the landing zone.
How the NFL’s dynamic kickoff works
◾ The kick: Only the kicker and the returner(s) can move before the ball hits the ground or touches a returner. No fair catches are allowed.
◾ The kick: Touchbacks in the end zone start five yards farther up the the field at the 30-yard line. If a ball lands within the landing zone and becomes a touchback, the ball is placed at the 20-yard line. If the kick falls short of the landing zone, the ball is placed at the 40-yard line.
◾ Onside kicks: No surprise onside kicks will be allowed. After the kicking team informs officials of their plans, the two teams will line up in traditional onside kick positions.
Where drives started after kickoffs in the preseason
The NFL said that in addition to more returns, drives started farther down the field in the preseason. The average drive started at the 28.8-yard line – a more than 4-yard increase from the past two years. On kickoffs that were returned, the average dropped to 28-yard line.
Why has the NFL implemented these kickoff rules
The NFL has tried a variety of measures in recent years to reduce the dangers of players crashing into each other at high speeds. That’s ultimately led to fewer returns. Last season, the NFL averaged 1.1 kickoff returns per game. That rate fell from 1.9 returns in the 2022-23 season.
Number of NFL kickoff returns tumbles since 2010-11 season
How will the NFL adjust to new kickoff rule?
NFL teams wanted to have the kickoff rule implemented before the 2024 NFL draft to properly adjust their rosters before the season.
While some NFL teams have core special team players, the rule change has forced each team to reconsider who they put on the field and develop new strategies for the play.
“I think there’s a lot of things that we learn as we start to figure out schematically how does it affect and influence games,” said Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay, who’s on the NFL’s competition committee.
“I think it’s good for the game, and I think all the intentions are in the right direction.”