During Thursday night’s preseason opener, New England Patriots fans were greeted with an entirely new way of kicking off a football game. The NFL revamped the kickoff over the offseason with the goal of creating more returns while reducing injuries.
The league used the XFL kickoff as a guide, with a few tweaks of their own. In simple terms, the kicking team now has to give the returning team an opportunity to return a kick, or the ball will be spotted at the 30-yard line. To reduce the severity of collisions, the coverage team lines up closer to where the returner will catch the ball with a shorter distance between them and the blockers.