good evening I'm Mike Norris and you're watching tune in news TV tonight we bring you a developing story from the intersection of sports and politics as former president Donald Trump has waigh in on the NFL's controversial new kickoff rules in a strongly worded post on his social media platform truth social Trump expressed his disapproval of the NFL's decision to dramatically alter the kickoff a fundamental aspect of the game the former president didn't mince words declaring I can't believe the NFL is effectively getting rid of the always exciting kickoff return such an exciting part of football what are they doing beginning of the end this new kickoff rule implemented for the 2024 season has indeed caused quite a stir among football fans players and now political figures the changes are significant and alter both the Aesthetics and function of what has traditionally been one of football's most dynamic plays under the new regulations the kicking team's players must now line up with a foot on the receiving team's 40 yard line a stark contrast to the previous rule where they lined up at their own 35 yd line additionally these players must wait until the ball hits the ground or a player is in the landing zone or end zone before they can start running on the receiving side the changes are equally dramatic the receiving team now has a designated setup Zone a 5 yd area from their 35 yd line to their 30 yd line at least nine players must line up in this Zone facing the kicking team with at least seven of those nine required to have a foot on the 35 yard line the NFL has stated that these changes are primarily aimed at reducing the risk of injuries as kickoffs have historically been one of the most dangerous plays in football the league hopes that by reducing the distance players run before Collision they can mitigate the risk of high-speed impacts that often lead to concussions and other serious injuries however as Trump's comments suggest not everyone is convinced that these changes are for the better critics argue that the new rules fundamentally alter a key aspect of the game potentially reducing excitement and strategic options for teams it's worth noting that this isn't the first time the NFL has adjusted kickoff rules in response to safety concerns in 2011 kickoffs were moved forward 5 yards to the 35 yd line making it easier to kick the ball deep into the end zone and leading to more touchbacks further changes in 2016 and last season continued to encourage touchbacks and reduce Returns the NFL's decision to implement these new rules was not taken lightly the changes were inspired by similar rules used in the now defunct xvl a lower budget competitor to the NFL interestingly the newly formed aul AEM merger of the xvl and usful has opted to maintain the traditional kickoff rules as we move forward into the NFL season it will be interesting to see how these new rules impact the game will they achieve their goal of improving player safety while maintaining the excitement of the kickoff or As Trump suggests could this be the beginning of the end for a beloved aspect of American football we'll be closely monitoring the situation and bringing you updates as players coaches and fans react to these changes throughout the season this is Mike Norris reporting for tune in news TV stay tuned for more on this developing story and all your sports news good night [Music]