The dynamic kickoff might turn out to be a failure. If owners want to make changes, today is their final and best opportunity.
They’ll be meeting in Minnesota, where their main goal is to allow all teams (except the Packers, who are already publicly owned) to sell up to 10 percent of the team to private equity funds. A quorum will be present, which means they can change any rule if they choose to.
The kickoff rule is on the agenda for discussion and updates. Even though it’s not the main focus, the owners can still make changes if they decide to.
There’s concern that once the regular season starts, teams might choose to kick the ball out of the end zone to avoid long returns. With over 40 percent of preseason kickoffs resulting in returns past the 30-yard line, it might be safer to kick it out of the end zone and start the drive on the 30-yard line.
We predicted months ago that by the trade deadline, half of the teams might be kicking the ball out of the end zone to start drives. This could happen sooner if coaches don’t want to risk losing games while experimenting with the new rule.
A simple solution would be to move the starting point to the 35-yard line, which was the original plan.
The change from the 35 to the 30 likely happened because there wouldn’t have been enough votes for the 35-yard line. So, it’s probably not going to get 24 votes now either.
Without a change, teams might end up starting drives on the 30-yard line, just like they did on the 25-yard line. This means the dynamic kickoff might not be very dynamic.
Technically, it’s not the last chance to make changes. The owners could do it during the season, but that would create inconsistency, with some games played under one rule and others under a different one. That’s why today is the best time to make changes.
If they really want to bring back the kickoff return, they will.
