“We are going to bring the excitement back,” Denver Broncos special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi, who was one of the primary architects behind creating the dynamic kickoff, said after the owners happily signed on the change in April. Initially, what started as a one-year trial, during which they moved on from the 25-yard line for kickoffs to the 30-yard line, the return rate improved from 21.8% in 2023 to 32.8% in the last season. That has “approved” written all over it.

Further building on it, when Rizzi and team proposed the idea of a 35-yard line, the owners didn’t waste time. Rizzi even predicted the return rate to go as high as anywhere between 70-75%. “I would tell you, probably in the 70-75% range, the return rate, but that remains to be seen,” Rizzi added. And all of this happened under the very watch of the NFL’s boss, Roger Goodell. 

But not everyone is sold on the idea.

With touchback moving from the 30 to the 35-yard line, owners basically dared teams to keep the ball in play instead of blasting it into the end zone. Goodell wanted more action, more returns, more excitement. But Harrison Butker of the Kansas City Chiefs? He’s not clapping. “No one is happy with touchbacks,” he said, making it clear that the commissioner’s shiny new plan isn’t exactly winning hearts in locker rooms. His point was simple but sharp:

If the league really wants drama on kickoffs, don’t punish the guys who actually have the skill to drop a ball right in the so-called landing zone. “If I can place it in there, have good direction and hangtime on it…that’s kind of what my job is…gotta really hit it in the landing zone,” Butker explained.

And here’s where the criticism lands. Goodell’s rule change basically forces kickers to keep things interesting, but Butker isn’t buying that this is progress. His whole job is precision – hit the zone, hang it long, let coverage do its work. And the league’s new setup feels like just a gimmick to him. A way to inflate return percentages while ignoring how actual kickers approach their craft.

This is the same kicker who sent Kansas City to a third straight Super Bowl berth with his leg in January. He nailed the game-winning 35-yarder against Buffalo in the AFC title game, proving once again that a kicker’s precision under pressure is priceless. The rule looks good on a spreadsheet, but it doesn’t respect the nuances of the job. But if Harrison Butker was firing shots off the field, Patrick Mahomes was taking hits on it – and not the kind you want in late July.

Mahomes’ camp chemistry plan hits a wall

Training camp in St. Joseph turned into a triage unit on Tuesday. Three of Mahomes’ wide receivers went down in the span of a morning. First came speedster Xavier Worthy, who landed awkwardly trying to make a catch and hit the medical tent. HC Andy Reid later said he banged his head, but Worthy returned, which means disaster was narrowly averted.

The same couldn’t be said for Hollywood Brown. Kansas City’s new WR1 pulled up in the back of the end zone and didn’t bounce back. Trainers carted him off with an ankle issue. The kind of scene Chiefs fans have seen far too often in Brown’s career. Signed on a one-year prove-it deal, he was supposed to be part of the deep-threat trio with Rashee Rice and Worthy. Instead, he left the field sitting in the front seat of a cart. Reid later said it wasn’t serious. But when your top target limps off in July, ‘not serious’ doesn’t feel all that reassuring.

And just to make sure the day hit the full bingo card, Skyy Moore joined the injury parade. Moore had a hamstring issue. He also needed a cart ride, his second camp setback in as many years. And as if watching three receivers limp off wasn’t enough, Mahomes also has to hear his kicker taking aim at the league office. Butker’s criticism of Goodell’s new kickoff rule may have sounded like a side note. But on a day when the Chiefs’ offense looked fragile, it doubled as a reminder: this team isn’t just fighting injuries, they’re fighting the league’s rulebook too.