New NFL Kickoff Inspired by XFL Shows Kinks in Debut

The NFL's new kickoff, inspired by the XFL, proved to be a work in progress in its debut during Thursday night's Hall of Fame preseason opener as teams tried to iron out the kinks.

The 2024 Pro Football Hall of Fame game Chicago Bears vs, the Houston Texans at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton Thursday ,August 1 , 2024. / Kevin Whitlock / Massillon Independent / USA TODAY NETWORK

The NFL's XFL-inspired kickoff debuted during Thursday night's Hall of Fame game, in which the Chicago Bears beat the Houston Texans 21-17 in a game cut short by inclement weather.

The story of the affair, however, was the NFL's radical change from its traditional kickoff, which saw turbulence in its debut as teams ironed out the kinks.

There was some good, bad and ugly. The Bears and Texans combined for eight kickoffs, with only one resulting in a touchback. Each team had an illegal formation penalty on a play where players can't progress until the returner catches the ball. Of the seven kicks returned, the longest return of the night came from Bears receiver John Jackson, a 31-yarder. The average starting field position was the 25-yard line.

The kickoff returns, designed to eliminate full-speed collisions, produced no injuries, one of the primary reasons for the NFL's shift to a play designed for maximum returns and safety.

For the first time... the Dynamic Kickoff 🙌

📺: @ProFootballHOF Game on ESPN/ABC
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/wga0LmuvtH

— NFL (@NFL) August 2, 2024

Ultimately, the most significant new rule change for the NFL in decades expectedly didn't match the league's "dynamic" moniker in its first test run. The attempt to resurrect new life into a dying kickoff return got off to a crawling start.

Predictably, most long-time NFL followers, many of whom were watching the new kickoff in play for the first time, came away unimpressed by a play that is a stark departure from the norm.

The new kickoff is going to look fake for the rest of our lives. We are gonna have to remind ourselves we are still doing that on every kickoff we see until we pass on. It won't do. I'm sorry to say we need to just go back to touchbacks.

— Kevin Clark (@bykevinclark) August 2, 2024

Sam Schwartzstein and his team designed and tested the XFL kickoff with college and pro players for nearly two years, starting in 2018 before it debuted in 2020. The European League of Football adopted it in 2022, but the merged XFL-USFL United Football League surprisingly abandoned the play in 2024.

Here’s my live reaction to the NFL Dynamic Kickoff courtesy of @kelllymiche pic.twitter.com/xdkMPTwZHk

— Sam Schwartzstein (@schwartzsteins) August 2, 2024

The unique kickoff is a badge of honor for Schwartzstein and advocates of innovations in non-NFL pro football leagues, which have historically cultivated concepts that the NFL and College Football eventually embraced.

But as evidenced by Thursday night, getting teams, players, coaches and fans to embrace the new kickoff is a work in progress.

You can find Mike Mitchell on X@ByMikeMitchell.

Catch up with the UFL at SI.com on Facebook and X.

The NFL's new dynamic kickoff rules 👀 pic.twitter.com/1N02SW7e4k

— ESPN (@espn) August 2, 2024