https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/president-donald-trump-rips-nfl-over-new-kickoff-rule-sissy-football-is-bad-for-america-184449257.html
President Donald Trump is once again directing his ire at the NFL. Trump took the league to task Monday over its new “dynamic kickoff” rule, calling the change “sissy football.”
Trump made those comments in a lengthy post on Truth Social. His full post read:
“The NFL has to get rid of that ridiculous looking new Kickoff Rule. How can they make such a big and sweeping change so easily and quickly. It’s at least as dangerous as the “normal” kickoff, and looks like he’ll [sic]. The ball is moving, and the players are not, the exact opposite of what football is all about. “Sissy” football is bad for America, and bad for the NFL! It’s like wanting to “roll back” the golf ball so it doesn’t go (nearly!) as far. Fortunately, college football will remain the same, hopefully forever!!”
The NFL instituted the new kickoff rules prior to the 2024 season. The new procedure, which the NFL refers to as a “dynamic kickoff,” involves players on the kicking team lining up on the receiving team’s 40-yard line and not moving until the ball hits the ground or is touched by a player in the designated landing zone.
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All players on the receiving team stand between their own 30-yard line or 35-yard line and also cannot move until the ball hits the ground or is touched by a player in the designated landing zone. The designated landing zone sits between the receiving team’s goal line and 20-yard line.
The “dynamic kickoff” differs greatly from the previous kickoff procedure, which saw players on the kicking team line up on their own 35-yard line. Once the ball was in the air, players on the kicking team would immediately sprint down the field to make the tackle.
The NFL had two primary reasons for moving to “dynamic kickoffs” in 2024. The league wanted to cut down on injuries on kickoffs, which is why players can no longer move until the ball reaches its destination. The NFL also wanted to promote more returns.
Under the previous kickoff rule, teams started telling kickers to kick the ball out of the end zone to ensure a touchback. The “dynamic kickoff” rules require the ball to land in the designated landing zone. If it doesn’t, it could result in the receiving team getting the ball at their own 40-yard line. There were scenarios in 2024 in which the receiving team could also start its drive at its own 20 or 30-yard line based on the “dynamic kickoff” rules. Under the old kickoff rule, a touchback would result in the receiving team starting on their own 25-yard line.
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The NFL was successful on at least one of those goals last season, as return rates took a step forward. With most touchbacks winding up at the receiving team’s 30-yard line last year, however, coaches still seemed fine with their kickers booting the ball out of the end zone. That changed in the spring, when NFL team owners voted in favor of pushing touchbacks to the 35-yard line. That change resulted in a 75.6% return rate during Week 1 of the 2025 season, per ESPN. That was the highest single week return rate the league had seen in 15 years.
That change wasn’t enough to excite Trump, who was apparently watching NFL games closely in Week 2.
It’s not the first time Trump has been critical of the NFL. In 2017, Trump called out players for kneeling during the national anthem, suggesting they should be fired. A handful of NFL players — led by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick — started kneeling during the 2016 season in protest of racial injustice and police brutality. Some of those protests carried into the 2017 season, with some franchise owners even taking part early in the season. The league altered its anthem policy in 2018, fining players who demonstrated during the national anthem, but also allowing players to stay in the locker room while the anthem was played.
Despite those critiques, Trump appears to have a solid relationship with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. Trump attended Super Bowl LIX and sat with Goodell during the game. The pair also appeared together at the White House in May to announce the 2027 NFL Draft would be held in Washington, D.C.
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It’s unclear how serious Trump is about trying to get the “dynamic kickoff” changed. The NFL seemed happy with the rule after introducing it last season, and there’s no indication the league will make any adjustments for now, especially if return rates remain high.
Trump, however, appears friendly enough with Goodell to suggest the change, so the situation could escalate depending on how much Trump decides he wants to make it an issue.
https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/president-donald-trump-rips-nfl-over-new-kickoff-rule-sissy-football-is-bad-for-america-184449257.html
