XFL's 4th-and-15 'Onside Kick' Has Fans Hoping NFL Will Adopt Rule Change

The new-look XFL has been around for just one weekend, but football fans already think that the NFL can learn a thing or two from the upstart league and its unique set of rules.

Mainly, people were fascinated by the XFL's substitute for an onside kick.

While teams are still allowed to attempt an onside kick, they can also attempt to convert a 4th-and-15 play from their own 25-yard line in order to keep possession.

This was demonstrated Sunday in a matchup between the St. Louis Battlehawks and the San Antonio Brahmas. Down 15-3 with 3:02 remaining in the game, the Battlehawks were able to rally for an 18-15 victory, thanks in part to one of those 4th-and-15 conversions that led to the game-winning touchdown with 16 seconds remaining.

And NFL fans were loving every bit of it.

The conversion rule comes with more excitement and brings more action into the game instead of the rarely successful onside kick, which typically seems destined to fail in the NFL.

During the 2022-23 NFL season, there were 56 onside kick attempts. However, only three of those (5.3 percent) were successful, down from 16.1 percent in the previous season.

The XFL has a number of unique rules that will be on display throughout its inaugural season. Among those are tiered extra point attempts—none of which include kicking—and overtime consisting of alternating possession from an opponent's 5-yard line.