Detroit Lions 'excited' about new kickoff rule, Dan Campbell already scheming up new ideas

ORLANDO, Fla. — Some people fear the unknown. Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell embraces it, which helps explain why he was so gung-ho about the new kickoff rules the NFL adopted at its annual meeting Tuesday.

"It gives us a chance to play special teams and with everything reduced, it takes away the impact," Campbell said. "And then it’s just about the unknown, which is awesome. Let’s coach it up. It can’t be any different — that much different than what it was in the old kickoff rule that we had. So I’m fired up, I’m ready.”

NFL teams still will kickoff from their own 35-yard line, but beginning next season, the coverage unit will line up at the receiving team's 40-yard line. Return teams must align at least nine men in the setup zone between the 30- and 35-yard lines, with up to two returners in the landing zone between the goal line and 20-yard line.

The radical new rules, which are similar to XFL kickoff rules and were approved by a vote of 29-3 for the 2024 season only, are designed to promote more returns and remove some violent collisions from the game by reducing the speed of the play.

Touchbacks now will be marked at the 30-yard line, fair catches are not allowed in the field of play and no one other than the kicker and return men can move until the ball is fielded or hits the ground.

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Last year, only about 22% of kickoffs were returned leaguewide. Historically, return plays have had an injury rate about twice that of a play from scrimmage, and a concussion rate approximately four times higher.

Speaking before the rules were passed, Campbell said the Lions were "absolutely in favor of" the changes "cause it gives us a chance to play special teams."

"I mean, what happened last year, really you felt like that took a significant number of plays out of the game, and those were from special teams," Campbell said. "And you don't really make it up really anywhere else. And so just we put an emphasis on it, so I believe in it. And I think the arguments for, 'Well, you're bringing more plays back in, so now injuries could go up.' Well, yeah, because you are (playing) more plays. But it feels like what we've done with it, it's been so condensed that the impact is out of it. Doesn't mean there won't be an injury, but — and so I think what’s got a lot of people spooked a little bit is the unknown of it, and that's what excites me."

Campbell said he and Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp already have spent time watching clips of XFL returns and talking through what the new rules might mean for scheme and personnel.

The Lions ranked 19th in kick return average last season (22.2 yards per return) and were among the best drive-start defensive teams in the league.

"That's part of the trick, right?" Campbell said. "You want to feel like you're doing something that is a little unique, or something they're not prepared for. And really that’s what it is. You want to find something they're not ready for, not prepared for, whatever that is. Maybe it’s been done, maybe it hasn't. But yeah, that's the exciting part of something new, and the coaching aspect of it. Fipp and I are like excited. I mean, we can't wait."

Lions general manager Brad Holmes told the Free Press the new kickoff rules could impact future roster decisions the team makes between now and the start of the season.

NFL teams could prioritize more dynamic return men with more kicks to return, could use more linebacker-types for their coverage units with less ground to cover downfield and might employ extra kickers on their practice squad with the potential to have kickers more involved in a tackle.

"The unknown is what the coaching’s for, like to mess with it," Campbell said. "You tinker with it and you figure out what's the best way to do it, how do you do it? So I'm excited about it."

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions' Dan Campbell 'fired up' about new kickoff rule