What to expect from the NFL's new 'dynamic kickoff'

LATROBE, Pa. -- Throughout training camp, Mike Tomlin has been very diligent in how his team will approach the NFL's new "dynamic kickoff." So much so, that he scheduled a joint practice with the Bills specifically to practice it against another team and get a sufficient amount of reps with it.

While there have been small glimpses of the new kickoff format throughout the early parts of camp, the Steelers repped it in full for the first time Thursday. Special teams coordinator Danny Smith said they wanted to wait until NFL officials arrived to ensure that his players were executing it correctly and that there was an open line of communication with the officials.

"I need to know how they're gonna officiate the play, so we can teach the play properly," Smith said. "So that's been outstanding. That's why I waited till they got here."

During a meeting with local media, NFL official Brad Allen said that the new kickoff rule is meant to protect players from unnecessary risk while also restoring a more dynamic kickoff to the game because only 21.8% of kickoffs were returned last season, the lowest mark in NFL history. The league is looking to increase that number to north of 30%.

So, the league put together a whole new format that teams are still learning as preseason games approach. Here's an in-depth breakdown of what to expect with the new kickoff, what changes might be on the horizon and how the Steelers are approaching all of it.

NEW KICKOFF FORMAT

To give you an idea of how this new kickoff will work, let's start with an explanation of the new kickoff.

First, players from both teams will start in "set up zones" five yards apart. The kicking team's players will start on the receiving team's 40-yard line and the players on the receiving team must have at least nine players between the 30-35-yard lines. The kickoff will take place from the defending team's 35-yard line after a field goal or touchdown and the 20-yard line after a safety. 

Kickers will aim for a "landing zone," which is between the receiving team's goal line and 20-yard line. Receiving teams can't have more than two players in the landing zone. Kickers can also kick the ball in many different ways. They can kick it horizontally off the ground, as Chris Boswell did in practice Thursday, or they can kick it off a tee like normal. However, the goal is to land it in the landing zone.

If a kickoff lands in the landing zone and rolls through the back of the end zone, the offensive team starts at the 20-yard line. If the ball lands short, or long, of the landing zone it's brought out to the 30-yard line. If the ball lands anywhere and rolls out of bounds, it's treated as it was in the past and is brought out to the 40-yard line. 

Players also can't move until the ball is received which eliminates the threat of players building up momentum as they run downfield.

Here's a look at how the Bears and the Texans handled the first kickoff of the season during the Hall of Fame game in Canton. 

As you can see, Steven Sims caught the ball in the landing zone and returned it just past the 25-yard line. It looks pretty simple, but it seems like there will be somewhat of a trial period. During his meeting with the media, Allen did say that there could be changes made to the rule depending on any "loopholes or nuances" that are discovered during the preseason.

"The competition committee, the NFL officiating department could revisit certain aspects of the rule, so that it is properly played, coached and officiated," Allen said. "What those are at this point, we don't know because we haven't even seen opponents go at one another with this rule. So is there some potential? I don't like to say never, always, must or shall, so there's some potential."

ONSIDE KICKS

With the new kickoff rules, there won't be any surprises as far as onside kicks go. With the new rules, teams can no longer execute an onside kick during the first three quarters of the game. To kick an onside kick, the game must be in the fourth quarter, the team must be behind and must also declare that they are going to onside kick.

So there's no more lining up in a regular kickoff formation and pulling off a surprise onside kick to catch the receiving team off guard.

STEELERS THOUGHTS

Tomlin, Smith, Arthur Smith and Omar Khan are all still experimenting as well. You're probably wondering, how do the offensive coordinator and the general manager play into this? Well, let me explain. 

The new rules take the speed and quickness aspect out of the kickoff, at least somewhat. With players lined up five yards apart, there's no need to use players to get down the field quickly to cover the kickoff. 

While practicing the kickoff Thursday, the Steelers used several linebackers and linemen, at least in the middle of the field. Only one or two defensive backs, wide receivers, or running backs were used on the outside of the lineup. Players like Breiden Fehoko, Willington Previlon, Spencer Anderson, Payton Wilson, Tyler Matakevich, Jack Colletto, Jacoby Windmon and Julius Welschof were all used at times, along with others. 

Danny Smith said that he deploys bigger bodies in the new kickoff rule because of their ability to shed blocks and eat up space on the field. 

"Who best, in the game of football, gets off blocks? Defensive linemen do it for a living, linebackers do it for a living, right? Okay, tight ends, do it on their releases when they are covered, so they ought to be good at getting off blocks because I'm gonna get blocked," Smith said. "Me and you are in a five-yard area, I ain't got all this field to wiggle on you, move on you, run away from you, and those kinds of things. So you better get guys that can hold space, you better get guys that can defeat a block, you better get guys that can run to the ball. So, you know, that's where those guys fit in. I mean, them d-linemen do that for a living. So the athletic types, we've taken the distance out of it. We've taken the speed out of it. They're in short range. I mean if DeMarvin Leal gets in there and does what I asked him to do, who's going to block that big man?"

The speedy receivers, running backs, defensive backs and ... quarterbacks, aren't taken completely out of the kickoff though. In the first seven practices of training camp, we've seen guys like Calvin Austin, Jaylen Warren, John Rhys Plumee, George Pickens and others all catch kickoffs. However, guys are moving in and out so it's tough to keep track of who will be involved. Today, I specifically saw Warren and Plumlee (no, not Justin Fields) return kicks.

But, that's also where Arthur Smith and Khan come into play. How does this roster take shape while considering the new kickoff rule? Does it mean a guy like Colletto, who may not have a huge role in the offense, has to earn his keep on special teams? Matakevich is a perfect example of this as he was brought in as a premier special teamer.

Kickers will also try to find ways to be most effective on kickoffs. Tomlin said Boswell and Matthew Wright have been experimenting with how to kick the ball, as was evident by Boswell kicking the ball horizontally. 

Lastly, the Steelers are still trying to figure out how to best utilize the new kickoff to their advantage. Danny Smith said he has a great understanding of the new rule and doesn't want to take a set approach to it. Meaning he doesn't just want to do the same thing every time.

"Take me to the game. What's the score? What's the situation? How good are we covering? How good is the returner? What's the weather? and I'll tell you what we're gonna do," Smith said. "I don't believe in that blanket statement stuff, you know, take me to the situation and I'll tell you what we're gonna do."