According to the Executive Vice President of the NFL, Jeff Miller, the league is dissatisfied with the rate of kick-off returns. They want to address this issue in the off-season and find a solution to further increase the appeal of the sport

In the “Ross Tucker Podcast”, Jeff Miller talked about the development of kickoff returns. He began by noting that the return rate had fallen from around 38 to 22-23 percent compared to last season due to a rule change.

It was decided that you get a better touch-back position when the ball crosses the end zone line. Previously, the return team was awarded 20 yards. After that it was 25 yards. The reason for the change was that the kickoff return is one of the plays with the highest injury rate. According to Miller, the frequency of injuries fell by around 60 percent after the rule adjustment.

At first glance, this sounds like a positive development. However, the NFL obviously sees room for improvement.

Together with the team owners, the league wants to look for a solution in which the kick-off return plays a greater role again without increasing the risk of injury. It is said that this play currently enjoys too little importance

Jeff Miller: Play design to be changed

Miller describes in the podcast that he would like to see a rate of up to 75 percent: “Why should you have a play that is not dynamic, interesting and entertaining?”

In order to change this, the team sat down together in the off-season. During the current season, they analyzed which plays cause the most injuries. The result was that, due to the speed of the players on the return, injuries are more severe than on other plays.

“I think we can create a play that encourages you to run a return more often and at the same time has more of a chance of injury than a pass or run play,” says Miller.