Proposed Kickoff And Kick Return Rule

Kickoffs, and it's possible demise, have been a frequent NFL debate in recent years. With it's high-speed collisions the play has been a target in efforts to make a violent game a little more safe. Some of the most brutal collisions and devastating injuries occur when big, fast football players run nearly the length of the field and into each other on kick returns. To lessen those collisions and injuries the NFL owners will vote on a proposed new rule this week. These are the takeaways of that rule proposal. (as listed on Pro Football Talk)

1. The kicking team must line up within one yard of the line where the ball is kicked (typically the 35-yard line), and must have five players on each side of the kicker. That changes the rule that allowed players to line up five yards behind the spot where the ball is kicked to get a running start. Now the kicker will be able to get a running start, but everyone else will get one step at best.

2. At least eight of the 11 players on the receiving team must line up within 15 yards of their restraining line, which would typically mean between the kicking team’s 45-yard line and the receiving team’s 40-yard line.

3. At least two players on the kickoff team must be lined up outside the numbers, and two players between the numbers and the hashmark.

4. Until the ball is touched or hits the ground, players on the receiving team can’t cross the restraining line (typically the 45), or initiate a block within 15 yards of the line where the ball is kicked.

5. Wedge blocks will be eliminated. Past rule changes have limited wedge blocks to two players, but now even the two-man wedge will be banned.

6. The ball will be dead if it touches the ground in the end zone. In the past the returner could pick up the ball off the ground in the end zone and run it out, but now it would be a touchback immediately if it touches the ground in the end zone.

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As a football traditionalist I hate to see any drastic changes to the game. As a football realist I know that the violent, ballistic nature of kick returns has to change. The above might be the best option that I've seen. I just don't want to see the kickoff eliminated.