KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid isn’t a fan of a new NFL rule.
The new rule specifies that if there’s a fair catch off a free kick (safety or kickoff) behind the team’s 25-yard line, the ball will be placed at the 25. Initially, a fair catch on a kickoff would put the ball at the 20-yard line.
The rule has been in place in college football since 2018.
Chiefs punter Tommy Townsend voiced his thoughts on Twitter.
“Not good for football for many reasons,” Townsend said, “but let’s pass something that players and coaches are so clearly against [thumbs up emoji].”
Head coach Andy Reid had similar thoughts.
“My thing is where does it stop,” Reid said. “We’ll see how this goes but you don’t wanna take too many pieces away, be playing flag football.”
There weren’t any fair catch kickoff returns in the NFL in 2022.
NFL personnel said the kickoff return rate will decrease from 38% to 31%, and the concussion rate will drop 15% due to the approved proposal.
The change was approved for one season only, hoping to gain some more data on kickoffs, field position, returns and concussions.
