Kick Return leagues should keep a eye on this.

Coachnorm

Coachnorm

Moderator
Just a suggestion at this point, but: The NFL's Competition Committee has proposed moving kickoffs back to the 35-yard line as opposed to the 30-yard line. Analysis: A touchback would give the receiving team the ball at the 25-yard line instead of the 20. Chairman Rich McKay cited injury concerns and the wedge block for the proposed change that would result in far more touchbacks. If the rule goes into effect, it would put a serious hurt on return-yardage fantasy leagues. It would also directly reverse the 1990s decision to move the kickoff line back and create fewer touchbacks.

One other rule change being proposed is to modify the replay system to automatically include all scoring plays.
 
Why not just eliminate tackling from the game and player injuries will decrease by a factor of 10............
 
yeah, removal of the wedge blocking is absolutely leaving the returner to be killed. Not that it will matter though since every friggen kick will make the EndZone anyways. :banghead:
 
Special teams will become a little less special. Maybe when it comes to Defenses we will have to award a point for even trying a kickoff return. :)
 
Phicinfan said:
yeah, removal of the wedge blocking is absolutely leaving the returner to be killed. Not that it will matter though since every friggen kick will make the EndZone anyways. :banghead:
Click to expand...

I had a couple of KR guys in one league and a couple of times I played the wrong one. I had to start studying up on kickers to see if they were kicking all touchbacks in the last couple of weeks.
 
Starting to like the CFL 1 pt rule more and more. Very few touch backs. You run it out of the endzone or give up 1 point. Don't like it for the missed FG so much
 
In the five years after NFL moved the kickoff from the 35- to the 30-yard line (1994-1998), touchbacks per game dropped from 1.8 to 1.1 compared to the five years leading up to the change.
The percentage of touchbacks on all kickoffs last season was 16.1 compared to 27.1 in 1993, the last year of the ball being kicked off from the 35-yard line. From 1989 through 1993, returners totaled 33 touchdowns. That number doubled when the line was moved back to 30. We have to factor in the five yard decrease in head-starts for the kickoff coverage team, but it's clear that the new rule will have a big impact in return-yardage leagues.
Source: Pro Football Talk on NBCSports.com
 
Browns | Joshua Cribbs not in favor of new kickoff rule Tue Mar 22, 07:07 PM

Cleveland Browns WR Joshua Cribbs revealed that he is not happy about the new rules on kickoffs during an interview on Sirius Radio Tuesday, March 22. 'I'm very upset about it. I highly disagree (with) the rule changes. Especially while there's no CBA in place I'm just baffled by their reasoning behind it, you know, changing the rules. Of course I know the reasoning behind it. I just disagree. Trying to make the game safer, I commend their efforts. I just think it could've been handled a lot better. Changing those rules will affect a lot of people including myself and incoming college (players) as well.'
 
The other major change involved instant replay. The booth replay official will now have to confirm all scoring plays, saving coaches from using challenges on plays in the end zone. To pass that proposal, the committee altered its suggestion by not changing the number of challenges for coaches. Now, coaches can make two challenges a game, but if they are correct on both, they would have access to a third challenge. The committee wanted to eliminate the third challenge.
 
It's sure to keep a couple of players off of fantasy rosters and could even get a couple cut from their nfl teams.
 
I wonder if the leagues that reward kick returner yardage are going to make moves to retain the KR value of those players before the next fantasy season. Actual Kickoff returners generally pick much more yardage per attempt than Punt returners do. Now kick off returners may pickup much less yardage reducing their value. Perhaps a small bump in scoring may make up the difference brought about by this rule change. Has any commishes in these KR yardage leagues done any thinking along these lines? I should think it would have to be done before the league draft so the value of KR guys is understood before being drafted.
 
This truly affects the kickers too. This extends the careers of some oldie but goodies like Carney, guys who you can count on to make FG's from 48 and in, but who can't bury the ball deep in the end zone. There are a few big boomers whose stock just fell.

Longwell is another kicker who just became more valuable.
 
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Something that kickers may try to do is get higher kicks with more hang time in an attempt to have returners possibly not even make it to the 20 yard line.

Just a thought.
 
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