During owners meetings last month, NFL vice president of football operations Troy Vincent appeared on the Dan Patrick Show. One of the topics discussed on the air was how kickoffs might be handled in the future. Vincent, who played for the Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles before joining the league office, said that the play “could be something we have to examine” at one point further down the line.
The idea of an NFL without kickoffs certainly is a controversial one. While the medical data, as Vincent claims, would be an argument supporting those looking to abolish the play, the history of the sport – one of which the kickoff is an integral part – cannot easily be wiped away.