When the Chiefs finally scored a touchdown late in the third quarter of Super Bowl LIX, they couldn’t attempt an onside kick — even though the score was 34-6.
By rule, the trailing team can’t attempt an onside kick until the fourth quarter.
Buried in the Competition Committee’s proposed rewrite of the kickoff rule is an important nugget: The trailing team may attempt an onside kick at ANY time during the game. Of course, the onside kick must be declared in advance. And the Competition Committee has proposed no alternative to the 2024 procedure, such as a fourth-down play by the trailing team.
Regardless, if the Competition Committee’s current proposal passes, a team trailing at any point in any game can try an onside kick.
To pass, the proposal will need 24 votes. And, in theory, the owners could go off the board and fashion a better approach to giving the team that’s trailing a chance to come back.
