The NFL competition committee may not have changed the rule we’ve all been waiting for them to change — Darn you, catch rule! — but they did make a change that could end up having more serious consequences than they imagined.
Starting next season, all kickoffs that result in a touchback will now bring the ball out to the 25-yard line, as opposed to the 20. This move was done in an attempt to limit injuries during kick returns, but even Roger Goodell has admitted that they aren’t sure the rule will work.
“We passed moving the touchback to the 25, which we do think has a safety element to it,” Goodell said, via CBS Sports. “We passed that also for one year because we do want to see if it changes the numbers and how it impacts the game because there is that thought that there will be some more short kicks.”
Dean Blandino, NFL vice president of officiating, agreed.
“We put it in for one year so we can look at if there are any unintended consequences, and we won’t get stuck with a rule,” Blandino told NFL Network on Wednesday, via Pro Football Talk. “It’ll be interesting to see how it plays out.”
The concern stems from the idea that, now that a touchback isn’t as helpful to the kicking team, kickers will begin to launch higher-altitude, shorter-distance kickoffs that will lead to more returns and more bigger hits.
Broncos’ kickoff extraordinaire Brandon McManus couldn’t agree more.
A players board should be represented at these competition committee meetings. Returns will 100% increase not decrease #ExperimentThat
— Brandon McManus (@thekidmcmanus) March 23, 2016
And he’s even got an even more out-of-the-box solution to the NFL’s problem.
If they want an incentive for less returns but want more scoring plays. Keep the 25 yd tb but give 1 pt for it going through the uprights
— Brandon McManus (@thekidmcmanus) March 23, 2016
But he’s not the only one. Former kicker Jay Feely says that most NFL kickers he’s talked to agree with McManus.
NFL Kickers I spoke with said they would now hit high hang time kicks outside the numbers to the goalline. https://t.co/xDBe2gzGT5
— Jay Feely (@jayfeely) March 23, 2016
So the question is: Why did the NFL even implement the rule?
If they were worried that the rule change would lead to more kick returns, then maybe they should have asked the guys who would be doing the kicking, just like McManus said. It didn’t take long to get their opinion on the subject.
The league wrote in an easy one-year out if the rule completely backfires, but all it takes is one serious injury on a return and a giant spotlight will be put on the competition committee’s head.
