1. conspiracy. (Joking)

saying that kickoffs that are not cleanly possessed by the return team get moved to the 20 as well. It would still reward kickers strong enough to kick the ball through the endzone.

Will we coach Hopkins to boom it and give up the 25, or will we coach him to kick it super high and deep and try to pin opponents inside the 25. Remember, while the coverege unit gets less of a head of steam, they also have 5 fewer yards to run. And since Hopkins doesn’t have to worry as much about depth, he could probably get some pretty serious hang time.

Of course, the other side is — even if you gained a few yards in FP on average by doing this, you are increasing the chance of a game-changing return for touchdown.

Probably depends on the quality of the opponent’s return game.

But, legally and morally and for public perception, they HAVE to adapt.

Even from 5 yards deep they ought to consistently reach the 20, and 5 yards is worth the potential big return. I do worry that it will get slightly harder to add young depth since kickoff team for freshman year is becoming moot.

of America continues. @ussies.

Next thing you know they’ll ban mid-field pre-game fights.

I think it would be too easy to just boot it through the endzone every time. I think bouncing, end over end kicks or high arching pooch kicks would be more effective. Why be a brute and automatically give it to them at the 25?

Another option is whether it has to be kicked from a tee? From your 35 to their 25 is only 40 yards. I would venture to guess most college kickers could kick it 50 with hang time so that potentially forces a fair catch at the opponents 15 rather than the 25.

Speaking as someone who has had far too many concussions for a single person including two on kick returns, I am in favor of this rule. Using your brain a little here is potentially better IMO that just kicking it through the uprights.

I’m not as bothered by the other two changes.

Overall, it doesn’t make sense to me to say “Kickoff returns are too dangerous. Let’s not eliminate the problem. Let’s just have fewer of a play that we recognize is too dangerous.” To me, it’s all or nothing: either the play is too dangerous to be within the limits of the game, or it is not. If it’s too dangerous, it should be eliminated or changed in a meaningful way. This doesn’t reach the threshold for meaningful change to me.

Putting the touchback for kickoffs at the 25 and for punts and fumbles at the 20 is confusing and inconsistent. It won’t be confusing for people who read this site, but for plenty of people it will be one of those things they just can’t remember about the game.

Also, this would seem to have an impact on things like how many yards in offense can be gained by a team or player, and how many points are scored. The impact of this is unlikely to be factored into historical records, thus meaning we once again end up comparing apples and oranges.

Is the kicker constrained to 5 yards running start? Kickers usually line up about 4 yards for a field goal and 10 yards for a kick off. The 5 yard rule, if applied to kickers, may shorten their max distance. Most college kickers can kick the ball 55-60 yards with a 4 yard approach. The use of a tee would add a few extra yards. Elite kickers with elite coverage will go for high kicks that land inside the 5.

Returning to rugby. You can get good hang time on a rugby ball with a drop kick. A Rugby ball is rounder and shaped better for kicking and bouncing. Not sure if a football would be easy to drop kick based on it’s shape being streamlined for the passing game.