The NFL is trying to spice things up when it comes to kickoffs and onside kicks.
Special teams coordinators developed new kickoff rules in hopes of increasing the “frequency and success rate of onside kicks” and thereby “increasing the likelihood of delayed comebacks.” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports. Sunday.
According to the report, teams will only be allowed to attempt an onside kick if they are behind in the fourth quarter and will have to confirm their intent beforehand.
If the kickoff team pursues an onside kick, the team may be “allowed to use an unbalanced (6×4) formation” in hopes of a successful recovery.
This proposed rule is clearly part of a larger proposal for evolving kickoff guidelines that includes a setup zone, where “the kickoff team and the returning team line up at the receiving team’s 40-yard line and 35-yard line, respectively; Do not depart until “if the ball is touched or reaches the “target zone” (20-yard line to the goal line),” Pelissero reported.
For a touchback, if the ball is kicked into the end zone, the receiving team gains possession at the 35-yard line. If the ball is kicked into the target zone and rolls into the end zone, the receiving team’s possession is 20 It starts at the yard line.”
However, nothing is set in stone yet, as owners must approve the changes and Pelissero said the language is “still in the final stages.”
According to the report, only 5.2 percent of onside kicks were recovered last season.
With the new rules, the league hopes to “make kickoff games exciting again” while avoiding an increase in injury rates.
The changes could be considered at the annual league meeting in Orlando starting Sunday, March 24th.
