If you happened to miss Texans vs. Bears in the NFL Hall of Fame Game we won’t blame you. Caleb Williams wasn’t playing, the Olympic games were on, and there are quite literally thousands of other things you could be doing that are a better use of your time than preseason footaball.
That said, if you missed the game you also missed the first time the league has used the new kickoff rules in a game. Borrowed from the XFL, the new kickoff is wild to see in practice.
The rule was adopted in the offseason to make the kickoff process safer, and reduce concussions. If this whole process looks like another language, then we’ve got you covered. We have a full breakdown of how the kickoff works here, but these are the Cliff’s Notes.
- Teams stand 10 yards apart
- The kicker must have the ball land in the green zone
There’s a lot more nuance to it, but it’s going to be a while before we get used to this.
