Arizona Cardinals ST coordinator Jeff Rodgers expects huge increase in kick returns
Arizona Cardinals ST coordinator Jeff Rodgers expects huge increase in kick returns "I would be shocked if the return rate is not 70-plus percent," Jeff Rodgers told reporters Tuesday.
After the NFL significantly changed how kickoffs were handled in 2024, a few small changes were made. Most notably, a touchback for kicking the ball out of the end zone will give the ball to the receiving team at the 35-yard line instead of the 30 like last season.
Arizona Cardinals special teams coordinator and assistant head coach Jeff Rodgers believes it will make a massive difference.
"I would be shocked if the return rate is not 70-plus percent," he told reporters before the Cardinals' first minicamp practice on Tuesday.
Last year, with the initial change, the kickoff return rate "only spiked from 20 to 30%" but it accomplished the goals the league wanted, a reduction of head injuries and in soft-tissue injuries.
Kickoffs had a few other changes, but those are more subtle, such as player placement and alignment before the kick.
Rodgers is pleased with the changes, as it will lead to more exciting football. For a while, it looked like the kickoff would be completely phased out. That is no longer the case.
"They want to play back in the game, and that's good for all of us," Rodgers said. "It's good for the players. It's going to make things more exciting...So you're talking about double the amount of competitive plays in my opinion, 100 more competitive plays per team per season. That's a lot like 50 more kickoffs are covering 50 more kickoff returns you're going to return. It'll change the game pretty good and we better get good at that stuff in a hurry."
Cardinals kick return specialist DeeJay Dallas averaged 30.6 yards on 15 kick returns and scored a touchdown. His touchdown was the first of the new kickoff style and one of only seven in the league.
We will see how much more this new change impacts the Cardinals in 2025.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
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