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All the NFL's New Rule Changes for the 2024 Football Season: Everything to Know
Football is almost back. Let's take a look at how the NFL rulebook is changing for this season.
We're just weeks away from the start of the 2024 NFL Season (which kicks off with the Kansas City Chiefs facing the Baltimore Ravens Thursday, September 5 on NBC and Peacock). Teams are training, preseason rosters are coming together, and fans are getting hyped for another year of football that will bring new stars, new challenges, and new stories.
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But of course, with every new NFL season also comes certain other changes, including tweaks to the NFL rules. Several major updates have been added to the rulebook this season, including the debut of an all-new kickoff procedure that's designed to encourage more kickoff returns. So with the new season on the horizon, let's take a closer look at the rule changes and what they mean.
A Brief Explainer of the New Rules Added for the 2024 NFL Season
The Big Rule Change for NFL Kickoffs
The most dramatic rule change coming to the NFL this season is undoubtedly the league's new procedure for kicking and returning kickoffs. In 2023, the league hit its lowest-ever levels of kicks actually returned by the receiving team (teams opted for either fair catches or downing the kick in the end zone). Furthermore, the speed at which players from the kicking team move down the field during the play has long created safety concerns. To combat both, the NFL has altered kickoff procedures in a major way.
The new kickoff rule breaks down like this: The kicker will line up on his 35-yard line, while the other 10 members of the kicking team will line up on the receiving team's 40-yard line, putting them considerably closer to the receivers. The receiving team must have at least nine blockers on a kickoff, and rather than spreading out across the field, they will all now line up between their own 35 and 30-yard lines, creating just five yards of space between the kicking team defenders and the receiving team blockers. Up to two designated return men on the receiving team will line up deep to return the ball.
It's interesting already, right? Well, it's about to get more interesting. The NFL has designated the 20 yards between the receiving team's 20-yard line and goal line as the "landing zone" for kicks, and have incentivized kicking teams to get the ball in that zone. If the ball doesn't reach the receiving team's 20-yard line (meaning the kick is too short), the receiving team will get the ball at their 40-yard-line. If the ball lands (not bounces) in the end zone (meaning the kick goes beyond the landing zone), the receiving team can either return it or down it for a touchback, and get the ball on their 30-yard line. If the kick goes out of bounds, receiving teams will get the ball at the 40-yard line. So, if you're the kicking team, your best bet is to land that ball in the landing zone and keep it playable.
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There are also, of course, incentives for the receiving team to make moves here. Fair catches are no longer permitted on kickoffs, so if the ball arrives in the field of play, you have to catch it and move with it. You can let the ball roll or bounce from the landing zone to the end zone and down it, but if you do that, you'll only get the ball at the 20-yard line, so it's perhaps better to take the ball out and try to get a return and a shorter field for your offense.
But here's the most interesting part: Apart from the kicker and the two return men, no one on the field can move until the ball is either caught or hits the ground. That means no head starts for the kicking team to get up a head of steam as they rush down the field, theoretically creating safer collisions on the field during kick returns. It'll be very interesting to see how this all works in actual practice, but if it seems messy, keep in mind that the NFL has instituted this rule for a trial run of just one year, so there's always the possibility it could change next season.
Onside Kicks Get Scaled Back
The new kickoff rules don't just apply to standard kicks. The NFL has also tweaked the rules about when and how teams can use onside kicks in an attempt to quickly get the ball back, and it's going to take some surprise out of the game.
According to the new rules, as reported by NBC Sports, all onside kicks must be declared in advance by the kicking team, which gives the receiving team a little extra time to get their squad in order. Onside kicks are also now entirely limited to the fourth quarter of games, so teams can't use the kick as a surprise effort to get the ball back in the middle of a game and build a lead. Speaking of building a lead, onside kicks are now also limited only to teams that are trailing. So if you're winning, and you're trying to secure an added advantage through the gamble of an onside kick, you're out of luck.
The Hip Drop Tackle Ban
In another move that's intended to improve player safety on the field, the NFL has also instituted a ban on the controversial "hip drop tackle," a method of tackling that basically lets gravity do a lot of the work, which also leads to the legs of a runner getting trapped under a defender's body, creating a higher injury risk. Here's how the NFL defines a hip drop tackle: "A hip-drop tackle occurs when a defender wraps up a ball carrier and rotates or swivels his hips, unweighting himself and dropping onto ball carrier’s legs during the tackle."
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For a longer explanation of what we're talking about, you can check out the video from NBC Sports above. All hip drop tackles will be assessed a 15-yard penalty and an automatic first down for the offense, so it's clear the league is really crackling down.
Other Rule Changes
While the new kickoff procedure and the hip drop tackle ban are going to get most of the attention as we head into the 2024 NFL season, there are a few other rule changes worth keeping in mind. Let's take a quick look.
New Challenge Rule: The NFL has approved a measure to allow teams a third replay challenge after just one successful challenge earlier in the game. Previously, you had to have two successful challenges in order to earn a third.
New Reviewable Plays: The NFL will now allow two more types of plays to be reviewed via replay. Officials can now assess whether or not a passer was down or out of bounds prior to throwing a pass, and whether or not the play clock expired before the ball was snapped, through replay review.
Offensive Fouls on Changes of Possession: The NFL will now enforce any "major foul" by the offense on a play in which possession changes (i.e. a fumble or an interception) and there were fouls by both teams. In previous instances, the fouls by the offense were usually ignored in favor of sorting out defensive penalties and determining possession of the ball.
The 2024 NFL Season officially kicks off on a special Thursday night edition of Sunday Night Football, airing on NBC and Peacock September 5, as the Chiefs and the Ravens face off in a rematch of last season's AFC Championship Game.
