It has been more than a decade since the NFL began reworking its kickoff in a quest to reduce concussions. The formula has been simple -- incentivize teams to avoid returns -- but only moderately effective. Now the league is considering an existential question as it implements its latest, and perhaps final, tweak of that effort:
Will 2023 be the final year of the kickoff as we know it?
League officials are openly referring to their latest rule change, one that encourages returners to fair catch balls that are kicked inside the 25-yard line, as a short-term patch for a spike in concussions during the 2022 season.