NFL.com: New York Giants owner John Mara envisions end to kickoffs

I really don't like this guy. :doh:

New York Giants owner John Mara, a member of the NFL's Competition Committee, says he can see a day in which kickoffs will be eliminated from football.

“We had a lot of discussions about whether we should eliminate it and if we did, what we could do in its place,” Mara told Giants.com. “There’s no consensus on it right now, but I could see the day in the future where that play could be taken out of the game. You see it evolving toward that.”

Last year, the league moved kickoffs from the 30-yard line to the 35 as a safety measure, which Mara says is the committee’s top priority. He adds that the increase in touchbacks last year coincided with a decrease in concussions. Although there is little interest in eliminating kickoffs at this point, Mara pointed out that "There was no support for moving the kickoff back to the 30 yard-line."

Mara says the NFL won’t eliminate the kickoff until it has the right plan for how to get rid of it, but he seems to think the play is fundamentally unsafe.

“Nobody would go that far now, but we talk about different blocks that we can outlaw,” Mara said. “The problem is that the concussions come from everywhere -- from the wedge, from the crossing blocks where a guy goes from one side of the field to another, from a full speed collision between a return guy and a tackler. So there’s no one thing that you can do. It’s something that we'll continue to watch as closely as possible.”

More and more I think the Redskins should go nuclear and blow the league up before it's too late to get these idiots out of power. What about onside kicks?

I can envision the end of John Mara as an NFL owner, let's focus on that part first. Jackass.

I never thought i'd say this...but this guy make jerry seem tolerable

I never thought i'd say this...but this guy make jerry seem tolerable

Hell, he even makes Goodell seem tolerable.

He couldn't get the college overtime rules to carry over to the NFL, so he just makes the regular game a college overtime. :doh:

I never thought i'd say this...but this guy make jerry seem tolerable

I never disliked Jerry.... just his team and all the faith the fans have in him.

Jerry is at least good for a laugh. This guy is just a ****ing idiot.

What about punts? Lets just make it a 4 down game then. I think there are more injuries on punts anyway. Yeah this doesn't make any sense. Lets have the QB carry a flag on his waist that you have to grab too instead of tackle him

John Mara comes across like Nurse Ratched in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest". The Redskins, and NFL players in general are R. P McMurphy.

Jones, like others have said really doesn't bother me too much. He is a character, but I respect his passion for the Cowboys even though his ego gets in the way.

He couldn't get the college overtime rules to carry over to the NFL, so he just makes the regular game a college overtime. :doh:

What's next with this guy, making 3rd down like 4th down in the CFL? I think 31 other owners will vote that to a no on his envision.

I envision an end to the NY football Giants one day.

Billy Madison strikes again.

Anyone check this jackass for dementia? Concussions syndrome?

So onside kicks will be eliminated, except for the Giants they can still try onside kicks if they're losing. The Giants will also get 6 downs and a 14-point spot.

Sound absurd? So does taking away money for "violating the spirit of the salary cap."

So, John Mara's still Dicktator Goodell's lackey I see?

Sounds about right.

Geez. How did this fool ever get on an NFL commitee?

Textbook example of the negative effects of nepotism.

He wants to do away with kicks so the game can be called Night-Mara Ball. Damn,someone needs to find something for this guy to do. He has too much time on his hands.

This guy needs to be put in a mental institution. He should not be in any place of power in the NFL anymore, he is going to ruin this game we all love......

He talks as if concussions dont happen during other plays. Might as well play the game without defense

This guy is on a ************* roll this offseason. I was pissed with all the touchbacks last season, but learned to live with it... no kickoffs though?

Who does he think he is? I can see having player safety a number one priority, but ruining the traditions of the game is going too far. He just comes off as one of those business minded morons that makes decisions based on the bottom line without thinking of all the other negative consequences.

On a positive note, the more we hear from John Mara, the better Snyder looks.

I think we should get rid of plays all together, and move the ball up and down the field based on a series of 100 sided dice rolls. Player safety is really all that matters.

Nothing they can do huh?

How about investing more money in equipment safety development instead of just waiting for players to find it on their own and bring it in, like w/ some of the newer helmets? How about making neck rolls a requirement? How about being proactive for a change instead of merely reactive?

Until they find a way for the onside kick to be used despite no kickoff, then there will always be a kickoff. Once upon a time the NFL had these same injury concerns while their players wore thin pads and leather caps. It wasn't until a couple years of fatalities from high school to pro level that equipment was improved, and even then it was college football that took the lead on new equipment and the NFL acting afterward. Some things never change. NFL still values money over player safety, their actions speak louder than their words. There is much safer equipment that the players could wear, but that costs money, whereas a rule change of 5 yards does not.

I guess Mara, who is quickly becoming the new NFL asshat, forgets that kickoffs are a rugby element that help maintain a semblance of football's origins. But hey, let's get rid of that and the exciting element of kickoffs because it's cheaper than investing money into better equipment. In fact, all these rules, including the subjective ones with "defenseless" WRs and QBs, wouldn't be necessary with state of the art equipment. But instead the NFL prefers to change the pace and tone of the game and come up with cheap solutions which only reduce the injury numbers, rather than, again, investing serious money into equipment and its development, and maintaining the game while working towards actually eliminating the problem.

elkabong82, great post. Mike Golic was talking about that this morning. He hates the defenseless receiver and quarterback. He was essentially saying the same thing, Also, anyone besides me notice that alot of players these days don't wear enough pads? I don't see hip pads (like Franco Harris used to wear), thigh pads and knee pads. I know some players at some positions don't wear them for speed purposes, but the NFL should step in and "make" them wear all the pads. There should also be minimum requirements for the pad size and thickness. I mean, if the NFL wants to "truly" protect their players, MAKE them wear all available pads. Eric Dickerson wore every pad known to man and was able to play and have a HOF career while maintaining his speed. These players could wear all the pads. I like your neck-roll idea also to help with the whiplash effect. They could wear a small one. They don't need an "ironing board" like Brian Cox.