NFL considering adopting kickoff model from the XFL for 2024 season

The NFL competition committee has discussed the possibility of adopting the kickoff model from the XFL in 2024, according to NFL.com columnist Judy Battista. She reported that there could be a proposal to vote on a version of the XFL kickoff as soon as March.

The NFL would like to see more returns after only 22% of kickoffs were returned this past season. The league would like to keep the return in the game while also making the play safer.

The XFL kickoff requires players on both the kick and return teams to line up five yards apart. The kicker and the returner are the only exceptions as they are allowed to line up elsewhere. This creates less likelihood of high-speed collisions as players have less time to get into a full sprint.

There were 13 kickoffs in Super Bowl LVIII this past season between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers. None of them were returned. The NFL implemented a new rule in 2023 where players are allowed to call for a fair catch on kickoffs, which could explain the decline in returns.

Although the return rate saw a drop this past season, kickoff returns still resulted in twice as many concussions as any other type of play. The goal of the proposed new rule would be to encourage teams to make more returns while also increasing player safety.

Either way, competition committee chair Rich McKay made clear the league wants kick returns to remain a part of the game.

“We have to be open-minded enough to say can we bring plays back in the game that have gone out of the game,” he said.

No change is official at this point. In order for the rule to pass through, it would need 24 votes of approval, not an easy feat by any means. We’ll see whether the league is able to get there likely sometime next month.

The NFL competition committee will resume meeting on Monday, according to Battista.

NFL reveals 2024 franchise tag figures

The NFL has sent a memo to all teams with the final 2024 salary cap numbers, including this year’s franchise tag price points for players at each position. The 2024 NFL salary cap is now $255.4 million per club, an increase of more than $30 million from last season.

The franchise tag can be used to secure a player’s contract for an additional season at the pre-set value — a number determined by averaging the top five contract amounts at that position in the league. Though four players received franchise tags last season, only one player actually agreed to play on the tag after their team opted to use it – Cowboys running back Tony Pollard. The others either signed multi-year contracts or, like Josh Jacobs, a one-year deal.

These are the franchise tag amounts for the 2024 season by position:

QB: $36.3 million
LB: $22.8 million
DT: $20.9 million
WR: $20.7 million
DE: $20.2 million
OL: $19.9 million
CB: $18.8 million
S: $16.2 million
TE: $12.1 million
RB: $11.3 million
ST: $5.7 million

On3’s Nikki Chavanelle contributed to this report.