And, rest assured, one of those returns could be of great importance. Whether 40 percent of kicks are returned or four, the kickoff is still part of the game for now and the Steelers are preparing accordingly. That’s the rule and that’s what we’re going to do.” I don’t spend a lot of time formulating an opinion.
“I wasn’t in the meeting when they changed the rule,” Smith said. Obviously, Smith is not overly pleased with the rule change, just as he wasn’t with the 33-yard extra point, but he says what he thinks is a moot point.
#STEELERS KICKOFF PROFESSIONAL#
Steelers special teams coordinator Danny Smith has dedicated the past 20 years of his professional life to kickoffs and punts, the so-called third phase of football. “I think it’s going to vary week by week, depending on who we play.” “It’s definitely going to be based on game by game situations, weather of course, but also the return scheme and stuff like that,” said Steelers kicker Chris Boswell. Will the Steelers push the envelope on kickoffs? Last year, Mike Tomlin’s Steelers were the most aggressive team on two-point conversions when the league rolled out changes to the point-after attempts that encouraged teams to go for two. One of the more popular ones is that kickers will take a little bit off the kick, producing shorter, high-arcing mortars in hopes that it will force a return. “I don’t think it’s any more dangerous than any other play in football.”Įxactly how this year’s touchback rule plays out remains to be seen - the league adopted the rule on a one-year basis and will likely adopt it permanently if it reduces the number of injuries associated with kickoffs - but theories abound. “Every time you step on the football field, anything can happen as far as that stuff goes,” said Ventrone. Ventrone, who makes the 53-man roster largely due to his fearlessness on special teams, doesn’t believe kickoffs are any more dangerous than a punt return or the garden variety second-and-8. This all begs the question, if it’s such a dangerous play and there are so many touchbacks, why bother with a kickoff at all? What had once been one of the most exciting football plays has now effectively become a reason for fans to use the bathroom during a commercial break. In 2010, just six years ago, 80.1 percent of kicks were returned. So far it has had the desired effect as last season just 41.1 percent of kickoffs were returned. The driving force behind the rules changes has been to reduce the number of kickoff returns and, subsequently, increase player safety. This comes five years after the league moved kickoffs from the 30 to the 35. No “Start Me Up.” No onside kicks either.īeginning this season the NFL is introducing a new rule where touchbacks will be spotted at the 25 instead of the 20.
Team scores, extra point, other team gets ball at the 25. It’s not difficult to envision a day where there’ll be a coin flip awarding the winner with the first possession at the 25-yard line. Yet the way the NFL is evolving with rules encouraging touchbacks, one must wonder if the kickoff may go the way of the single-bar facemask and the Wing T. But for a guy like me, that’s kind of what I live for.” “I think it’s going to be tough to do that.
“Yeah, that’s what it seems like but it’s the most exciting play in football,” said Steelers safety Ross Ventrone, a player who’s very livelihood depends on special teams. Now, the question seems to be how much longer will there even be a kickoff? LATROBE - The question “what time is kickoff?” has been as much a part of the football lexicon over the years as “go for it or punt?” and “what’s the point spread?”
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