The NFL's new kickoff rule is here to stay with a slight tweak. What else is changing?
The NFL's one-year experiment with the new kickoff rule becomes permanent this season with a new tweak that the league hopes will lead to a bigger increase in the rate of returns.
The league also approved changes to the overtime rule, expanded replay assist and made a few other technical changes for this season that will first be on display starting with the exhibition opener Thursday night between the Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Chargers.
The league experimented with the so-called dynamic kickoff in 2024 in hopes of more returns while also making the play safer. Owners voted in April to make the change permanent while moving touchbacks on kicks that reach the end zone on the fly from the 30 to the 35, which is expected to lead to more kicks in play and more returns.
There was no change in the tush push play that Philadelphia used so successfully on the way to winning the Super Bowl last season.
Here's an explanation of some of the new rules that will be in place. What's new with the kickoff?
The league was mostly pleased with the experimental kickoff put in place for 2024 that led to the rate of kickoff returns increasing from a record-low 21.8% in 2023 to 32.8% last season, while reducing the rate of injuries on what had been the game's most dangerous play.
The rule made kickoffs more like scrimmage plays by placing the coverage players and blockers close together to eliminate the high-speed collisions that had contributed to so many injuries on the play. The league said the rate of concussions dropped 43% on returns, with a significant reduction as well in lower-body injuries.
The problem last season was many teams still opted to kick the ball in the end zone because the touchback wasn't punitive enough. The average starting field position on a touchback was only 2.4 yards further than the average starting position after returns, which was the 27.6-yard line.
By moving the touchback to the 35, the league projects that the return rate will rise to somewhere between 60% and 70%, with a similar increase in long returns, adding more excitement to the game.
The league also approved a small tweak to how blockers on the return team are allowed to line up in the setup zone that could lead to longer returns. How about onside kicks?
Teams will still need to declare their intention to try an onside kick because of the different formation. But a new change will allow trailing teams to try one before the start of the fourth quarter after Kansas City had to kick deep while down 28 points in the final minute of the third quarter in the Super Bowl.
Coverage players will also be allowed to line up one yard closer in hopes of increasing the rate of recovery from about 6% over the past three seasons to at least 10%. How will o vertime change?
The league approved a proposal to make the regular season overtime more like the postseason, with both teams getting a chance at a possession, even if the team that gets the ball first scores a touchdown.
The NFL added regular season overtime in 1974, adding a 15-minute sudden death period that ended on any score. In 2010, the rule was tweaked to a modified sudden death that required an opening possession touchdown to immediately end the game instead of only a field goal. That was in effect in both the regular season and the playoffs.
Overtime then was shortened for the regular season to only 10 minutes in 2017. A rule change in 2022 for the playoffs only gave both teams the chance to score even with a touchdown on the opening possession.
Now that will be the case in the regular season, after the improved field position on kickoffs made winning in OT on an opening possession TD easier.
According to Sportradar, six of the 16 overtime games last season ended on an opening-drive TD for the most overtime games ended on the first drive since the rule change went into effect in 2010.
In all, teams that won the overtime toss won 75% of the time last season, according to Sportradar, and have a .606 winning percentage in overtime since it was cut to 10 minutes.
The league kept the 10-minute overtime period instead of expanding it back to 15 minutes like was originally proposed by Philadelphia, which could lead to teams opting to go for 2 and a win if they match an opening-drive TD with one of their own since there might not be time for another possession. Replay assist
The NFL expanded its replay assist system to overturn objective calls if there was 'clear and obvious' evidence that a foul didn't occur. The calls could include facemask penalties, whether there was forcible contact to the head or neck area, horse-collar tackles and tripping. Replay also would be able to overturn a roughing-the-kicker or running-into-the-kicker penalty if video showed the defender made contact with the ball.
The league has been using replay assist in recent years to overturn obvious errors on aspects like whether a pass is caught or where the ball should be spotted without the referee needing to stop the game for a review.
The Competition Committee says there's no interest in allowing replay assists to call penalties on plays missed by officials on the field. Other changes
Referees will no longer use the chains to determine first downs, opting instead for a virtual measuring system. This won't eliminate the officials who manually spot the ball and use chains to mark the line to gain. The optimal tracking system notifies officiating instantly if a first down was gained after the ball is spotted by hand.
There were some procedural rules changed in regards to injured reserve. Teams can place two players on injured reserve with the designation to return when rosters are reduced to 53 players instead of after. Playoff teams also will be granted two additional return from IR designations.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
recommended
Item 1 of 3
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
FOX analyst suggests Michigan Wolverines football legend J.J. McCarthy has little room to improve in the NFL
FOX analyst suggests Michigan Wolverines football legend J.J. McCarthy has little room to improve in the NFL originally appeared on The Sporting News Despite Shedeur Sanders' status in the Cleveland Browns' quarterback battle and Caleb Williams' persistent struggles producing most of the mainstream headlines out of training camp, there seems to be a growing concern with the Vikings' young signal-caller. J.J. McCarthy missed his rookie season after numerous complications following a torn meniscus, so naturally, there will be growing pains as he acclimates himself to the league. It doesn't help that he will be under center for a team coming off a 13-win campaign, which was a game away from winning the division and being the top seed in the NFC. Coach Kevin O'Connell and star wideout Justin Jefferson have defended the 22-year-old's development, but the local media beat hasn't been impressed with his performance. On his show "The Herd," responding to a report that McCarthy is working on his touch as a passer, Colin Cowherd scoffed at the notion he's in a similar position as a young Josh Allen. "Josh Allen was a total project, but he was a moldable piece of clay," Cowherd said. "McCarthy got three years of great coaching from Jim Harbaugh—you're looking at what he is. This idea that he's going to go two or three levels up from what he's been is unlikely." Suggesting that young talent can't improve in the NFL if they had elite college coaching seems a bit tone-deaf. There are too many cases of backups at blue-blood programs turning pro and outproducing their draft slot. McCarthy is still raw—it's not like Michigan asked him to command its offense. Who knows how well he could diagnose defenses and grasp a scheme? Maybe we should let him play a few meaningful games first before suggesting his ceiling is capped.
Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NFL holdouts, contract negotiation tracker: Now that Kyren Williams has a deal, how close are other stars to getting their own?
NFL training camp season is officially upon us, which means holdout/hold-in season is too as players seek new contracts. While Rams running back Kyren Williams was never a hold-in, his contract situation was one of the buzziest this year. On Tuesday he agreed to a reported three-year, $33 million deal with Los Angeles, including $23 million in guaranteed money. [Subscribe to Yahoo Fantasy Plus and unlock Instant Mock Drafts today] Williams was more diplomatic than some of his peers seeking new contracts have been, which isn't to say there's a right or wrong way to go about it. All situations are different. But now that Williams' deal is done, how close are the other star players seeking new contracts to sealing theirs? Let's take some temperatures, from closest to furthest. Buffalo Bills RB James Cook This is a bit of a dart throw. After participating in camp each day from the start, Cook has now sat out Bills practice two days in a row due to "business." Sounds like the situation is getting more tense, not less, right? Well, now that Kyren Williams' deal is done, it can provide some semblance of a template for the $15 million a year Cook is seeking. It won't be straightforward — negotiations rarely are — but Cook's agent works for LAA Sports, which just resolved Shemar Stewart's flap with the Bengals, which was a more difficult situation than this. (We think.) Given how valuable Cook is to the Bills' offense, we're going to assume this gets done by end of next week. Cincinnati Bengals pass rusher Trey Hendrickson Hendrickson still hasn't practiced since reporting to camp on July 30, and the Bengals's offer is reportedly well past $30 million, per Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer. The issue remains the guarantees structure, but the Bengals already softened a clause in Shemar Stewart's contract to get a deal done, and we're guessing they'll do more softening with Hendrickson's wishes by the end of preseason since he's the reigning sack king and their best defender by a mile. San Francisco 49ers WR Jauan Jennings Jennings has yet to practice since reportedly aggravating a calf injury on July 27. Is that time missed injury-related, or business-related? "You can ask him that," 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday. Jennings is reportedly seeking a new deal after a breakout 2024 season, and is set to make $7.5 million this season on the final year of a two-year extension. We're guessing the, shall we say, extra time away from the field will help expedite a deal here before the season kicks off. Dallas Cowboys pass rusher Micah Parsons Micah Parsons requested a trade late last week. Jerry Jones said Cowboys fans shouldn't lose sleep over it. It's wildly difficult to envision a scenario in which Dallas trades Parsons, who looked very engaged not just with players but also with team leadership — minus the Joneses — on Monday, per Yahoo Sports' Jori Epstein. This has all the earmarks of a deal that gets done the week the season kicks off — especially, as Yahoo Sports' Nate Tice pointed out on the latest episode of "Football 301", considering it would steal some headline thunder from the rival Eagles hosting the opener as Super Bowl champions. Washington Commanders WR Terry McLaurin McLaurin has been standing on his trade request since July 31, and while there isn't a ton of animus here, the moving parts indicate a new contract could take a while to get done, if it does at all. NFL Network reported teams haven't exactly been burning the Commanders' phone lines inquiring about McLaurin, and there appears to be a significant gulf between what McLaurin and his team thinks he's worth (north of $30M per year) and what Washington does (maybe closer to the $23 million per year Courtland Sutton just got). McLaurin is officially designated on the PUP list with an ankle injury. Who knows how soon he'll move off it. Green Bay Packers OL Elgton Jenkins Jenkins is moving from guard to center, and wanted a reworked deal that reflected it. It sounds like he won't get it before this season, and that Jenkins has made peace with that. There are two years left on his current contract extension, which reportedly includes non-guaranteed base salaries of $11.7 million this season and $18.5 million in 2026. All signs point to zero movement here until after the season.
Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Packers' Matt LaFleur diagnoses Lukas Van Ness's 'desire for perfection' for slow career start
Packers' Matt LaFleur diagnoses Lukas Van Ness's 'desire for perfection' for slow career start originally appeared on The Sporting News The Green Bay Packers will be a team to watch this season. They've been doing everything possible to ensure their offense is tough to handle this year, and they're aiming to do the same on defense. On Monday, the Packers signed Corey Ballentine to bolster their secondary. 'Ballentine was on the Packers' practice squad and active roster from 2022-24. Over three seasons with Green Bay, he appeared in 37 regular-season games with seven starts and three postseason contests,' wrote. One name that has drawn attention throughout the summer for the Packers' defense is former first-round pick Lukas Van Ness. Van Ness entered the league with a lot of hype, but last season, despite injuries to others, he didn't see an increased role. 'Whatever snaps were freed up by Smith's departure weren't handed to Van Ness. Instead, Brenton Cox and Arron Mosby got more opportunities and largely delivered. Both Cox and Mosby put interesting reps on tape last year as pass rushers, though their size made them liabilities in the run game,' Joe Meerdink wrote. Van Ness's lack of production has made him a frequent topic of trade speculation this summer. However, on Tuesday, head coach Matt LaFleur suggested that Van Ness's desire for perfection has held him back. 'Matt LaFleur suggests Lukas Van Ness has been held back a bit by a desire for perfection. 'This is an imperfect game and sometimes you just gotta go.' Said he's doing a better job of that this year,' Locked on Packers' Peter Bukowski wrote. Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp This could be a promising sign for Van Ness, who will likely need to prove himself this season. It's a make-or-break year for the former first-rounder, and with a new mindset, a breakout season could be on the horizon. Now that Van Ness understands that hiccups are part of the process, he may be less hard on himself and more willing to take risks.
