Dawn Aponte, the NFL’s chief football administrative officer, said earlier this week that moving kickoff touchbacks from the 30 to the 35 before the start of the season is “not likely.” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was even more adamant after the team’s final preseason game Saturday.
“No. No. No. No,” Jones said. “I don’t expect any changes in the kickoff at all. . . . I would not anticipate anything like that and don’t.”
Owners will meet Tuesday to discuss the league’s potential decision to allow teams to sell a portion of the franchise to private-equity funds. The NFL also likely will update owners on the preseason results of the dynamic kickoff, as the league is calling it.
Before this weekend’s final preseason games, the average starting position was the 28.3-yard line, according to the NFL, which is up 4.4 yards from last season. The starting spot following a touchback is the 30-yard line, and teams could decide to just concede that to avoid the risk of a long return.
That is a fear Jones doesn’t share.
“I don’t know that [teams will kick it through the end zone], because each team will be different,” Jones said.
The league changed the kickoff rules after return rates fell to an all-time low of 22 percent last season, and all 13 kickoffs in the Super Bowl were touchbacks. Before this week’s slate of preseason games, the dynamic kickoff had resulted in 78 percent of kickoffs returned.
It’s unlikely that number will remain that high in the regular season with the starting spot at the 30 following a touchback.
Jones said it’s too early to form any kind of opinion on the dynamic kickoff until the regular season starts.
“From what I’ve seen, . . . I’m OK with it [for now],” Jones said.