Donald Trump turned his attention away from politics and to the NFL by slamming the league’s decision to change the kick off structure by declaring it’s the “beginning of the end” for American Football.
The NFL has decided that it will no longer allow players to stand at the 35-yard line and must wait until the ball either hits the ground or hits a “landing zone” when kicked from the opponents, before they are allowed to start running.
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The landing zone is defined as between the receiving team’s 20-yard line to the goal line and additionally, the receiving team has a “set up zone” in a five-yard area between the 35 and 40 line, where at least nine players must line-up to face the kicking team.
“I can’t believe the NFL is effectively getting rid of the always exciting Kick Off Return,” Trump posted to Truth Social, his own website. “Such an exciting part of football.
“What are they doing? BEGINNING OF THE END!”
Why has the rule been changed?
As a result of the changes, neither kicking nor receiving team are allowed to move until the ball has hit the ground or a player in the landing zone or end zone, in a bid by the NFL to reduce injuries by changing the riskiest part of the football game.
Previously, players could run at each other 100% from long distances to cause high speed collisions which could have resulted in serious injuries and the rule has been sporadically changed over the years such as in 2011, 2016 and 2023.
The new system aims to encourage the total of returns, which fell to a record low in 2023, as well as making sure players are as safe as they can be from head injuries, fractures or ligament tears to name a few.
The new kick off rules were inspired by the XFL, an old NFL competitor, which merged with the USFL to form the UFL in 2024. Ironically, the UFL follows the traditional kick off format.
