Team owners have approved a new rule that will take what essentially had become “a dead play” and make it an integral part of the game again.
By Rob Maaddi, Associated PressThe opening kickoff of an NFL wild-card playoff football game, Jan. 13, 2024, in Houston. The NFL competition committee is proposing a rule to penalize so-called “hip-drop” tackles and a radical change to kickoffs to add more returns without compromising safety.
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. 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.
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.
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