The Miami Dolphins voted on Monday to approve a new kickoff rule that mimics the current XFL format.
And after giving it some consideration, who could blame them?
With the format of the kickoffs, the safety of the returner should be substantially reduced. Now, with players having a full head of steam when toe meets leather from 65 yads away from the goal line, they have 35-40 yards distance from the returner, and they can't start moving until the ball is fielded by the returner. Oh, and their take off is limited by opposing players standing 5 yards in front of them.
That's a completely different universe than what we've seen. A far safer one for all involved. Ergo, the reason it passed.
So, could it be something that certain teams might be able to exploit? Perhaps, and if so, the Miami Dolphins should certainly be one of those teams. In fact, with Miami's number of blazing skill position players, they might be in the best position in the league to do it.
The obvious concern and hesitation before was putting one of their top skill position players in danger of taking a massive hit and suffering a significant injury during a kickoff. While injury is always a risk, that risk is significantly reduced with the new format.
As such, would a return duo of, say, Tyreek Hill and Devon Achane give the Dolphins the opportunity to take advantage of their speed in an area of the game where they really haven't had much of an impact in recent years? Or perhaps Raheem Mostert and Jaylen Waddle?
It's really not a crazy idea at all. Mike McDaniel, special teams coordinator Danny Crossman, and staff have an entire offseason to perhaps cook up something potentially very interesting.
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