NFL’s New Kickoff Rule: Say Goodbye to the Surprise Onside Kick
One of the most electrifying plays in the game is no more
When the league’s 32 owners gave the green light to the new rule in March, they had to sacrifice the surprise onside kick. Teams can still attempt an onside kick in specific scenarios, but the element of surprise is now off the table.
Why’s that? Let’s break it down.
With the new kickoff rule, the kicker lines up at the 35-yard line and has to boot the ball into the return team’s landing zone, defined as the area between the receiving team’s goal line and their 20-yard line. The kickoff has to reach the 20-yard line to be considered in play, so a surprise onside kick is a no-go. If a kicker tries it, the kickoff is ruled out of bounds, and the receiving team gets the ball at their own 40-yard line or wherever the ball stopped.
I’ve spoken with several retired NFL players who are excited about the new kickoff rule but don’t understand why the league had to mess with the onside kick rule. It’s not broken and was never in question with the rules committee. The NFL has seen a rash of former players speak out against some of the rule changes, saying it’s turning the league into flag football rather than the hard-hitting sport we grew up watching. If you never got to see Ray Lewis, Patrick Willis, or Brian Urlacher hit a running back or receiver, you’re missing why we love football.
Yes, I understand the NFL is about player safety. Two seasons ago, we watched Tua Tagovailoa suffer multiple concussions and Damar Hamlin nearly lose his life on the field. But some of these rules are just plain dumb.
The last team to successfully pull off a surprise onside kick was the Jaguars, who snagged one against the Chiefs in 2022. Plays like that are history under the new rule.
The most iconic surprise onside kick happened in Super Bowl XLIV when the Saints shocked the Colts by recovering one to open the second half. The Saints scored a touchdown on the ensuing drive and went on to win 31–17. Even Bill Belichick, the Patriots’ former head coach, expressed his disappointment about losing the surprise kick, telling Pat McAfee in April, “I don’t like that they took [out] the surprise onside kick.”
While the surprise kick is benched, onside kicks are still in play with some special rules:
- Only in the fourth quarter.
- Only if the team is trailing.
- The officiating crew must be informed of the attempt.
Standard onside kick rules apply from there.
The surprise onside kick might make a comeback since the new NFL kickoff rule is a one-year trial. If the league scraps it after 2024, we could see the surprise onside kick return in 2025.
