The NFL Competition Committee has authorized a one-year change to the kickoff play:
- The ball is kicked from the kicking team's 35 yard line (same as current rule)
- Safety kicks would be from the kicking team's 20 yard line (same as current rule)
ALIGNMENT
- All kicking team players other than the kicker will line up with one foot on the receiving team’s 40 yard line
- Kicker cannot cross the 50-yard line until ball touches the ground or a player in landing zone or end zone
- The 10 kicking team players cannot move until the ball hits the ground or a player in the landing zone or the end zone
The receiving team will line up as follows:
- Setup Zone – a 5-yard area from the receiving team's 35 to the receiving teram's 30 yard line, where at least 9 receiving team players must line up
- At least 7 players with one foot on the receiving team's 35 yard line (restraining line) with alignment requirements (outside numbers, numbers to hashes, and inside hashes)
- Players not on the restraining line must be lined up in setup zone outside the hash marks
- All players in the setup zone cannot move until the kick has hit the ground or player in the landing zone or the end zone
- A maximum of 2 returners may line up in the landing zone and can move at any time prior to, or during, the kick
LANDING ZONE
- Landing zone is the area between the receiving team’s goal line and its 20-yard line
- Any kick that hits short of the landing zone – treated like kickoff out of bounds and ball spotted at receiving team's 40 yard line; play would be blown dead as soon as kick lands short of the landing zone
- Any kick that hits in the landing zone - must be returned
- Any kick that hits in the landing zone and then goes into the end zone – must be returned or downed by receiving team – if downed then touchback to the receiving team's 20 yard line
- Kick hits in end zone, stays inbounds - returned or downed – if downed then touchback to the receiving team's 30 yard line
- Any kick that goes out of the back of the end zone (in the air or bounces) – touchback to the receiving team's 30 yard line
Source: NFL.com
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