Several months ago, we predicted that, by the trade deadline, half of the league would be kicking off out of the end zone and giving up the 30 yard line. Some coaches have mentioned that potential strategy.
Today, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said he’d never even considered the possibility.
“It’s a hell of an idea,” Shanahan told reporters when asked whether he’s thought of continuing last year’s strategy of rarely if ever putting the ball in play. “I haven’t thought of that. Yeah, we’re all talking about that and it looks like it’ll make a lot of sense once the season starts. But, this was our first week with us doing it. It was our first week really getting more teams, besides the Hall of Fame game and stuff, to evaluate it. When you can start there at the 30 and the average starting line’s the 29, it doesn’t seem like there’s that much of a difference to really go with the risk of it. It also can be an advantage too. We’ll see how good our 11 are that we put out there, how our returners are and stuff, whether people give you the opportunity for it. But it’s kind of a wait-and-see approach.”
Some coaches, when the season starts, will want to wait and see what others do. They won’t want to be the guinea pigs for the new approach, which could result in one long return that changes the outcome of one game that ultimately keeps his team one spot out of the playoffs and results in the head coach out of his one and only job.
There’s another possible plan at work here. Given the calls in some circles for the owners to move the touchback point to the 35 before Week 1 in order to avoid a continuation of the kickoff being a dead play, some coaches might be thinking about keeping their mouths shut and playing along so that the owners won’t realize that teams will opt to bang it out of the end zone, until it’s too late to change the rule.
Owners are reportedly planning to meet on August 27 to discuss private equity rules. It also could be their last chance to muster 24 votes to move the touchback to the 35 for the 2024 regular season.