Pat McAfee slams NFL's 'garbage' kickoff rule proposal

The NFL passed a new rule change Tuesday that received plenty of pushback from coaches and players prior to its passing. The league voted in favor of a rule that now allows players to call a fair catch on a kickoff and get the ball at the 25-yard line, a rule that was adopted by the college game in 2018.

Special teams are a topic that is near and dear to the heart of former Indianapolis Colts punter and current sports media personality Pat McAfee. On a recent episode of his show, he slammed the NFL for considering the rule change before it was officially passed and did not hold back on the use of colorful language.

“It’s the most amateur, bush-league-looking bull**** I have seen in a long time when it comes to the NFL,” McAfee said. “I know there was a strike zone that was put into football so that there couldn’t be anymore head-hunting shots. I understand that they changed some rules so kickoffs can’t have as many people back so there isn’t as big of a run up so that we can save people’s brains … This particular rule is absolute garbage.”

The NFL for years had tried to make kickoffs safer after data revealed that it’s the most dangerous play in football. But McAfee believes this rule crosses the line from making the game safer to altering it a little too much.

“This is disgusting. This is not what football is. You think about the kickoff, it’s like one of the greatest things about football, it is. It starts the game obviously, but it’s also one ball, 11, 11, let’s go. Let’s try to get as much as possible, let’s make incredible plays and tackles,” McAfee said. “Them thinking about putting this bull**** in is alarming.”

McAfee added that the connections he has with NFL coaches, general managers, and special teams coordinators have told him that they don’t really like the rule, which was confirmed by Sports Illustrated‘s Albert Breer on Sunday. McAfee was specifically reacting to a report from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero that revealed the vote on the rule was pushed to Tuesday with major opposition from special teams coaches but support from the leauge’s competition committee.

“And I guess it’s only the competition committee that’s in on it. Nobody at the NFL level whose been around professional football or professional humans in special teams who have jobs because of kickoff coverage, and kickoff return, and everything, and strategy that can play into that whole thing wants this rule. So I hate it AJ (Hawk), I didn’t know there was steam behind it either, but apparently there is and I’m about done with it, we need to put this one to bed and relax with this whole thing,” McAfee concluded.

Unfortunately for McAfee, the league did not put the rule to bed, passing it Tuesday morning which naturally got an instant reaction out of him on Twitter that can be seen below.

This is a joke. https://t.co/WmEKXUt31W

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) May 23, 2023