Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid shared his feelings on Wednesday about some recent NFL news that’s dominated headlines the last two days.
Earlier this week, the NFL passed a new fair catch rule on kickoffs for the 2023 season. The new rule will be on a one-year trial run in 2023.
The new rulestates that a kick returner who calls for a fair catch inside the 25-yard line will automatically receive the ball at the 25-yard line. So if a player calls for a fair catch at the one-yard line, the ball will be spotted at the 25-yard line. This has been the rule in college football since the 2018 season.
On Wednesday, Reid was asked at Kansas City’s voluntary OTAs about the new fair catch rule. And Reid made it clear that he’s not a fan at all of the NFL’s new rule.
“My thing is, where does it stop right? We start taking pieces and we’ll see how this goes,” said Reid. “But you don’t want to take too many pieces away or you’ll be playing flag football.”
#Chiefs Andy Reid on the new fair catch kickoff rule:
“Where does it stop?… Taking pieces away and you’re playing flag football.”— PJ Green (@PJGreenTV) May 24, 2023
According to multiple reports, most special team coordinators across the NFL feel the same way about the new rule. The good news for Reid and those who don’t like the rule is that it’s just a one-year trial run. It seems likely that teams will try squib kicks in an attempt to force teams to return kicks that land inside the 25-yard line.
There’s also the possibility that teams will try short high kicks to allow their special teams units time to get down the field and force a return. Special teams coordinators will do their best to find creative ways to get around the new rule. And it sounds like Reid is completely on board with going back to the old kickoff rules in 2024.
