The New Kickoff rule

I thought it was a good rule for the NFL to reduce pointless injuries and having to weigh kickoff specialist on the roster, but in college there is a huge roster of guys that may only get to play special teams. Thinking somewhat cynically though, our kick coverage has been pretty spotty, so maybe this will help us.

 
Why the f#*k would they move a touchback to the 25 yardline? I realize it gives a player more incentive to take a knee, but sh#t, it's a rough game. If you don't like it, join the swim team. What's next? Are they going to make field goals worth 20 points to prevent contact on touchdown runs/passes?

 
I could totally see this rule lasting only one year and then being changed again. Teams are going to have their kicker kick the ball to the goal line every time since they now have 5 less yards to cover. Why kick it in the endzone and take it to the 25? Kickers are currently able to kick it out of the endzone from the 30, that is roughly 80 yards. If they only have to kick it 65 yards (35yd line to goal line) they should be able to kick it MUCH higher than before. I think you'd be crazy to just settle for a touchback every time. Pin the other team at the 10.

 
I got confused whether the goal is to have more touchbacks or more returns. In the past they moved the kickoff from the 40 to the 35 to the 30, obviously to reduce the touchbacks, so I assumed any new rule was to do the same. I see why for safety why they would want to swing it back to touchbacks, but as has been pointed out, putting the ball on the 25 conflicts the purpose.

 
This is a horrible decision! 5 yards is not going to help safety whatsoever. Think about how quickly a person reaches top speed. 5 yards fewer is meaningless. And you then penalize safety by saying if you don't allow a return (where all of the injuries are going to occur) then we are going to penalize you 5 more yards? Whomever made this decision was obviously bi-polar

 
Mochila from Grand Rapids, Mich., writes: Adam, I enjoyed your evaluation of the new kick-off rules, but you left out one other change that I thought was surprising. The NCAA also proposed moving the Touchback to the 25-yard line, up from the 20. How might this factor into teams' kick-off strategy? I'm guessing this was done to curb the anger of the Purdues and Nebraskas of the country, but it's a greater boon to teams that are bad in the kick return game. Will we see teams attempt to pooch it to the 1-5 yard line to force a return? Thanks for keeping us Bored-at-Work folks breathing through the off-season.
Adam Rittenberg: Good call, Mochila. I should have included the part about the 25-yard line. I think it all depends on the quality of the return man, the leg strength of the kicker and how much faith a coach has in his coverage team. For the most part, coaches can live with teams starting on the 25-yard line after a touchback. It's certainly better than watching a guy like Raheem Mostert or Ameer Abdullah break into the open field. The rule changes are designed to slow down the actual kickoff play -- coverage teams won't have as long a long run-up to the ball -- so teams that want to kick inside the 5-yard line had better be solid in closing gaps. My sense is if teams have a kicker who can record touchbacks, they'll go that route and then take their chances defending 75 yards of field.

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Some props to NU's kick return team in Rittenberg's blog today.

 
I'd be lying, and I think many of you would be too, if we said we didn't expect something like this to happen eventually. An increasing number of people are becoming wary of kickoffs because of the danger they represent. Yes, it's a contact sport. Yes, it alters the very history of the game we all love. But people are obviously concerned enough to want to make changes happen.

I don't know whether this was the right course of action or not, but I can't say I'm surprised.

 
For good or bad..............I think it is noteworthy when guys like Aikman suggest they may not let their own kids play football..............

 
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