NFL Rule Change Results in Record-Low Kickoff Returns in Week 1 of 2023 Season

NFL kickoff returns are increasingly becoming a thing of the past.

Just 20.5 percent of kickoffs were returned in Week 1 action, which is the lowest rate on record, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Data on kickoff returns dates back only to 2000, but Kevin Seifert of ESPN wrote it is likely the lowest in NFL history.

The NFL is experimenting with a new rule that allows returners to fair-catch a kickoff inside the 25-yard line and have the ball placed at the 25-yard line, making it similar to a touchback. The rule, which was adopted for the 2023 season and will be revisited next offseason, was designed to reduce pop-up kicks that became popular in recent seasons.

The NFL says concussions happen on kickoffs more often than any other play. However, the league has been resistant to this point to eliminate them entirely.

According to Siefert, the NFL has predicted a 70 percent touchback rate for the 2023 season.

NFL chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills told Pat McAfee in August that the new rule is a "stopgap" on the way to a larger change.

"It's a really long process, but this year's rule, I look at it as a stopgap, it's an interim step while we try to figure out something better for the long term," Sills said. "But it feels like we need to do something given how many injuries are happening on that particular play in proportion to other plays in the game."

It's unclear what type of rule changes the NFL will consider in the future, but it's becoming increasingly apparent the league wants to legislate concussions out of the game.