New Kicking Rules and the Houston Texans: What’s in Store for This Season?

In the overall history of the Texans, their special teams play has ranged from passable to average. Few will look back fondly on the Marciano era, especially since he seemed to rule their game for years. It’s not that the team didn’t have its moments. In recent years, special teams have seen an improvement in the quality of play. Frank Ross is one of the best special teams coaches in franchise history. Since he took over, the team’s special teams have provided one of the few bright spots in the dark times of the early 2020s. With the team now emerging as a legitimate contender, special teams appears to be a significant positive for the team.

What will be worth watching from a special teams perspective is the new kicking rule changes and how they impact Houston’s solid special teams unit. A quick look at the new kicking rules:

• The kicker lines up on his 35-yard line and cannot move until the ball advances beyond the 50-yard line.
• The rest of the kicking team lines up on the 40-yard line (5 on each side) and must keep at least one foot on the 40. They cannot move until the ball is recovered or lands in the touchdown zone (20-yard line – goal line).
• The home team has a 5-yard “set-up zone” between the 30- and 35-yard lines. 7 players from the home team must be on the 35-yard line. Two players may be outside the 35-yard line in the set-up zone, but must be lined up outside the hash lines.
• The receiving team may have 2 returners behind the 30 yard line in the designated touchdown zone.
• There is no fair catch if the returner catches the ball in the landing zone. If he catches it, he must be ready to return it.
• If the kickoff does not reach at least the 20-yard line (beginning of the touchdown zone), then it is considered a touchback with the ball placed on the 40-yard line.
• If the kickoff enters and/or exits the end zone directly on the fly, it is a touchback with the ball on the 30-yard line.
• If the kickoff lands in the touchdown zone, rolls into the end zone and is not recovered before then, it is a touchback to the 20-yard line.

On the one hand, the new rules could hurt Houston. Under the 2023 rules, the team was highly rated in touchbacks and overall kick coverage. They also recorded 2 of the 4 kickoff returns for TDs in the NFL (Dameon Pierce and Andrew Beck). On the contrary, they could have been part of the group pushing against the new rules. When did you think you would see the Texans have some of the strongest special teams in the game?

Still, peeling back the special teams onion, there are some interesting possibilities for the Texans in 2024. Borrowing the old XFL model for kickoffs, it’s likely that someone like Dameon Pierce will be a prime candidate to excel in this new environment. With a significantly reduced distance between the kick return team and kick coverage, run-blocking type concepts could dominate. Beck could be even more of a fullback as the “lead blocker” on returns for someone like Pierce. Guys with flexibility and speed will still have a place on special teams. Still, straight-line speed may not be the asset it once was, especially with increased blocking commitments to deal with. Additionally, will those on the field blocking kicks be more likely to be on the field blocking in tight quarters than they are on the field blocking in space? Not that you’d expect guys like Tunsil or Howard to be on the field blocking, but if an Oline reserve with wheels is on the roster, would he be a key special teams starter? Maybe you’ll see more linemen with size to block kick returns than you’ve seen in the past.

And what about the kicker? In 2023, kickoffs, barring extenuating circumstances during play, have been assigned to the placekicker. Given that most kicks have reached the end zone for a touchback, this hasn’t been a major stress on his primary responsibilities. Still, since a full touchback isn’t optimal under the new kickoff rules, it’s increasingly likely that kickers will need to be more than just the guy who kicks the ball. With 10 players centered near the field goal/receiving area, the kicker will need to act as the special teams safety. While it’s generally not a good thing for the kicker to tackle, it may become even more of a necessity. Thus, some creative solutions are emerging. The defending champion Chiefs are reportedly turning to safety Justin Reid (yes, that Justin Reid) to handle kickoff duties. Additionally, kickers like Justin Tucker are hitting the weight room to bulk up in preparation for having to make bigger tackles on kicks (even if Tucker’s message was a bit tongue-in-cheek). Maybe a position player on the field will record the majority of kickoffs.

While we don’t have any reports of Fairbairn bulking up too much, we haven’t heard or seen any action that suggests anyone other than the placekicker will be handling kickoff duties. Dare Ogunbowale is expected to return to the roster, so the emergency kicker role seems set. FYI, during his time as the kicker against Tampa Bay, he managed to get 3 touchbacks, but two of them came because he kicked high up the field due to Buccaneers penalties. He showed enough leg to be able to land the ball in the designated area. However, a team can’t afford to play short, as landing the ball short will give the receiving team incredible field position (the 40-yard line).

Another consideration for the team may be its defensive capabilities. A “traditional” touchback puts the ball on the 30-yard line, rather than simply kicking into the designated touchdown zone. Yet, if a team has a formidable defense and is facing a team with a weaker offense, they might simply opt for the “touchback penalty,” just to mitigate the risk of a big play and rely on the defense to end a possession quickly. Given the strength of the Texans’ special teams, they are likely to try to make the other team return the kick, relying on a balance of good special teams and a solid defense to alleviate any concerns. Additionally, given the Texans’ strength on special teams, they seem just as likely to look forward to the challenge of a kick return.

It’s a shame to lose the surprise kickoff (and a lesser loss, the end of the kickoff to kill the clock/mitigate the return a bit), but the Texans haven’t really used the surprise kickoff option under Frank Ross’ special teams reign. Either they didn’t have the talent to make it worth the gamble, or the team was in a position where they didn’t need to rely on such trickery to do good things. Personally, I would have liked to see the NFL incorporate some sort of surprise kickoff capability, or just adapt the 4th-and-12 you see in the UFL to the 4th quarter to try to get the ball back to the kicking team. Maybe future changes will come. Or maybe it’ll just be a one-year experiment (even the UFL hasn’t adopted the XFL’s kickoff plan…). That doesn’t mean what was a somewhat anticlimactic move up until now could become a climactic event, potentially… well, except for Houston, which made kickoff much more watchable on TV in 2023. Can that continue in 2024? Let’s hope it does for the team’s sake.