The first weekend of XFL games are in the books, and the first impression was a damn good one.
It all started with the kickoff, where in the XFL, the kicker kicks from the 30-yard line and must kick the ball in the air and in play between the opponent’s 20-yard line and the end zone.
The coverage team lines up on the return side 35-yard line and the return team lines up on the 30-yard line. Neither team can move an inch until that ball is caught by the returner.
Because of the eccentric new rules, kickoffs are back to being exciting once again. It is being reported that of the 35 kickoffs in the first weekend of XFL play, 32 of them were returned, according to ESPN.
If you’re not that good with numbers, that is 91.4 percent. For comparison sake, only 36 percent of kickoffs were returned during the 2019 NFL season.
If the NFL is truly serious about player health going forward, then they’ll think about adding this version of the kickoff t limit head injuries or serious injuries. No word on if anybody actually got injured during the 1st slate of XFL games during kickoffs. That is a good sign.
