NFL Tweaks Kickoff Rules, Still Working Out New System Ahead of Week 1

The NFL issued a memo to teams clarifying several rules related to the new kickoff protocols, which were unveiled for the first time in the preseason. The changes are minor but suggest that the league is still figuring out the system as teams prepare for Week 1.

Most of the tweaks are as minor as alignment changes and assessing penalty yards on specific fouls. The most significant change is wording related to the use of a tee, which must now be used by kickers in every kickoff situation except an onside kick. Onside kicks can no longer be done without declaring first, so the absence of a tee will not be a giveaway to opposing teams.

This sort of fine-tuning is routine for the NFL as it learns more about the kickoff in practice. It will be far more interesting to see how teams prepare plays for the new play during the regular season.

Several teams have already alluded to creative ways to take advantage of the kickoff, from utilizing high-profile position players to different blocking schemes and return methods. It is unmarked territory in football, an oddity in a sport where most schemes have been analyzed in extremely minute detail.

Not every change has been well-received. Insiders and fans alike have criticized the loss of the surprise onside kick, arguing that it takes spontaneity out of the play and made it harder to retain possession in do-or-die situations. Others have complained that the play is poorly officiated and uninspired, an over-correction by the league in a misguided attempt to improve player safety.

“It’s hard to see all the little stuff, because everything is at the same time, and you have a bunch of guys running into each other in close quarters at the same time,” Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said of the preseason kickoffs. “There was a block in the back, there was a blatant takedown that went into somebody’s knee, so I’m a little concerned about all of the chaotic injury potential for the play.”

Initial reactions to a new idea in any sport will be mixed, but opinions are more likely to solidify in the regular season, for better or worse. There is no doubt that many teams have held something back in the preseason, keeping tricks and innovations to themselves until the regular season. It is possible that these plays will improve the kickoff’s standing in the eyes of viewers.