Sick of seeing the ball sail over the head of your team’s kick returner? Tired of no returns and starting drives at the 25? Well, the NFL has enacted a rule change that should fix that.
On Tuesday, the NFL owners voted to adopt a rule change to place the ball at the 35-yard line for touchbacks. The previous automatic spot for a touchback under the “dynamic kickoff” rule was the 30-yard line.
Why should this lead to more returns? Well, simply put, most NFL coaches will consider it unacceptable to let the other team start at the 35.
“In 2024, about one-third of kickoffs were returned, with most going into the end zone for touchbacks,” Pro Football Talk reported. “This year the NFL is projecting that about two-thirds of kickoffs will be returned, as teams decide giving their opponents better field position isn’t worth booting the ball into the end zone.”
In addition to leading to more returns, the new rule will turn kickoffs into more of an art. A premium will be placed on having the ball fall short enough of the goal line but not so close that it will likely bounce in for a touchback.
In other words, the ball must land short of the goal line but far enough away that the receiving team must field it to prevent it from being downed inside the 10-yard line.
