As football season approaches, many people who didn’t pay much attention during the offseason are starting to realize that the new kickoff rules come with some big changes.
The surprise onside kick was gone.
A lot of people are acting as if that’s something new. But it’s not new. It was a clear and obvious part of the rules changes the league adopted in late March.
Because onside kicks require an entirely different formation, all onside kicks are announced in advance, onside kicks cannot be taken until the fourth quarter, and only the losing team may take an onside kick.
Efforts to minimize kickoffs before 2024 made onside kick recoveries harder, but still allowed for unexpected onside kicks. Now that doesn’t happen. It never will.
This is one of the few rule changes that limits the options teams have had in the past.Two times in the last 30 years (Cowboys vs. Steelers, Saints vs. Colts) a surprise onside kick has been successful in the Super Bowl.
Still, the league believes it’s a fair trade: more kickoffs in exchange for no surprise onside kicks under any circumstances.
Either way, those who didn’t notice this consequence of the new kickoff formation back in March are now finding out — and apparently a lot of people don’t like it.
The good news is that the new structure has been adopted as a one-year experiment – 24 more of the 32 owners would need to vote in favour to continue it through 2025.
