Proposed NFL Rule - Penalty for Punting Out of Bounds

[Dan T.]

NFL teams are currently penalized for kick-offs that go out of bounds. Why not penalize teams for punts that go out of bounds too?

It's becoming more and more common for punting teams to simply kick the ball out of bounds rather than give the Devin Hesters, Desean Jacksons, and Brandon Banks the opportunity to return punts. From a marketing perspective, a long punt return is perhaps the most exciting play in football. For a league mindful of increasing offensive play, such a rule makes sense.

Punting the ball out of bounds seems like a too-easy, cowardly tactic to avoid a good punt returner. Penalizing punts kicked out of bounds solves that.

There are different implementation scenarios. The penalty could be 10 yards from the original line of scrimmage and repeat 4th down. Or it could be 10 yards tacked on from where the ball goes out of bounds, return team's ball. You could exempt a punt that lands inbounds but then bounces out of bounds, and waive the penalty for punts that go out inside the opponent's 20 yard line.

It would be a major rule change for a league often loathe to make such shifts in its game, but I think the time for such a rule is here.

Thoughts?

[onedrop]

the two are fundementally different. a team chooses to punt, on a normal down. kick-offs are dead ball plays where the kicking team is forced to put the ball in play.

[Dan T.]

the two are fundementally different. a team chooses to punt, on a normal down. kick-offs are dead ball plays where the kicking team is forced to put the ball in play.

Good point, but I'm not sure that precludes a penalty being established for punting out of bounds.

[dallasfan]

KOs are from a set point and if you allowed teams to kick KOs out of bounds, kickers would almost always pin teams inside the 10 or 5 yard line. The locaction of punys varies and it's a lot harder to pin punts, and sometimes teams if they're too far back in their end zone cannot punt the ball out of bounds because the swing in field position would be minimal

[Sticksboi05]

One of the most ludicrous rules I've ever heard proposed...

[Drew_Fl]

no offense to you personally, but this is one of the dumbest things I've heard. If the field was 75yds wide instead of 50, then maybe. There would be a penalty on nearly half of all punts.

If you want this rule implemented, then I counter with this:

Also take away Fair Catch and if the ball is punted over 30 yards in the air, it is recoverable by the kicking team for possession. Now that would make punt returns much more interesting. But i don't want to see it implemented.

[wrecker]

Punts are a big part of strategy in a game. I would not want to take that element away. Plus on kickoffs you don't have the pressure of people running at you while you are trying to kick the ball.

Sometimes it is a better decision for the punter to kick it short out of bounds rather to have it blocked. If they made this rule it would really skew a lot of stats also.

[Dan T.]

KOs are from a set point and if you allowed teams to kick KOs out of bounds, kickers would almost always pin teams inside the 10 or 5 yard line. The locaction of punys varies and it's a lot harder to pin punts

I'm thinking of the proposed rule as a parallel to intentional grounding. Why is intentional grounding penalized? Think of punts out of bounds as the intentional grounding of the kicking game.

[wrecker]

I'm thinking of the proposed rule as a parallel to intentional grounding. Why is intentional grounding penalized? Think of punts out of bounds as the intentional grounding of the kicking game.

I would assume that most punts out of bounds outside the 20 are not intentional. Plus a QB can intentionally throw the ball out of bounds if he is outside the tackles.

[Dan T.]

Punts are a big part of strategy in a game. I would not want to take that element away. Plus on kickoffs you don't have the pressure of people running at you while you are trying to kick the ball.

Sometimes it is a better decision for the punter to kick it short out of bounds rather to have it blocked. If they made this rule it would really skew a lot of stats also.

I acknowledge that this would be a huge change in football, both strategically and from a statistical standpoint. Fun fact: The goalposts used to be located at the goal line. Moving them was a huge change in the game, but the league did it.

[onedrop]

I'm thinking of the proposed rule as a parallel to intentional grounding. Why is intentional grounding penalized? Think of punts out of bounds as the intentional grounding of the kicking game.

grounding is used to avoid loss of yardage. punting is voluntarily admiting you cant get a first and thereby surrendering the ball. its still your possession and there is no requirement to give the opposition a live ball. thats why you can fake a punt but not a kick-off, its your ball to do with as you please.

[skins1206]

I acknowledge that this would be a huge change in football, both strategically and from a statistical standpoint. Fun fact: The goalposts used to be located at the goal line. Moving them was a huge change in the game, but the league did it.

Player Safety

[flock53]

one of the most ludicrous rules i've ever heard proposed...

x 100000000000000000

[justice98]

More punt returns wouldn't be a bad thing. As an objective observer of a team that's not your own, and you had a choice between seeing the punter kick it out of bounds 5 times or Devin Hester return it 5 times, which would you choose?

The NFL changes rules all the time to add excitement to the game. Like moving kickoffs back because there were too many touchbacks. Nobody wants to see no kick off returns.

[Dan T.]

Player Safety

True. But the point is that the NFL made a basic, fundamental change to its game, despite the fact that the change affected strategy and statistics. If they've done it before, they can do it again.

[BeachSkin]

Speaking of intentional grounding, why isn't a penalty called when a quarterback spikes the ball to kill the clock? Doesn't get more intentional grounding than that.

[Dan T.]

More punt returns wouldn't be a bad thing. As an objective observer of a team that's not your own, and you had a choice between seeing the punter kick it out of bounds 5 times or Devin Hester return it 5 times, which would you choose?

The NFL changes rules all the time to add excitement to the game. Like moving kickoffs back because there were too many touchbacks. Nobody wants to see no kick off returns.

They also changed the penalty for kickoffs out of bounds. It used to be a 5 yard penalty and re-kick. They changed it to spot on the 40.

[gsliberty]

so, do we get to start rushing the kick off specialist?

because he has no stress, making it easier to directional kick. punters have to avoid the rush, field a snap, etc,

[JPCreativelab]

i doubt this would be proposed by anyone that didn't have Hester on their team or the potential of a Brandon Banks....so i don't agree with it.

If we didn't have a Banks this wouldn't of been brought up.

I am guessing there, but seriously, if Randel El was still our return guy, would you have still had the same thought process and proposed the new rule?

if you say yes, then i apologize for assuming

[#98QBKiller]

Speaking of intentional grounding, why isn't a penalty called when a quarterback spikes the ball to kill the clock? Doesn't get more intentional grounding than that.

Because there's no danger of the QB losing yardage because of a defender when he spikes the ball. In other words, intentional grounding was put into place to make sure that a QB can't just throw the ball down and avoid losing yardage when he's about to be sacked by a defender.

*Edit:

Source:

http://www.nfl.com/rulebook/intentionalgrounding

Intentional Grounding of Forward Pass

1. Intentional grounding of a forward pass is a foul: loss of down and 10 yards from previous spot if passer is in the field of play or loss of down at the spot of the foul if it occurs more than 10 yards behind the line or safety if passer is in his own end zone when ball is released.

2. Intentional grounding will be called when a passer, facing an imminent loss of yardage due to pressure from the defense, throws a forward pass without a realistic chance of completion.

3. Intentional grounding will not be called when a passer, while out of the pocket and facing an imminent loss of yardage, throws a pass that lands at or beyond the line of scrimmage, even if no offensive player(s) have a realistic chance to catch the ball (including if the ball lands out of bounds over the sideline or end line).

[Dan T.]

i doubt this would be proposed by anyone that didn't have Hester on their team or the potential of a Brandon Banks....so i don't agree with it.

If we didn't have a Banks this wouldn't of been brought up.

I am guessing there, but seriously, if Randel El was still our return guy, would you have still had the same thought process and proposed the new rule?

if you say yes, then i apologize for assuming

Well, in my defense, they haven't started punted away from Brandon Banks. Yet.

[SuperSkin6]

You can also usually kick the ball farther and it's easier to pin an opponent deep on a kickoff.

[JPCreativelab]

Well, in my defense, they haven't started punted away from Brandon Banks. Yet.

true.

i guess the way i look at it, its great for the Bears, and for us if Banks really opens it up in the return game, but that one time, in a game that really means something, it will come back to bite us when we have to kick to someone, forced to kick...and a TD return happens that allows us to lose the game.

thats when id be like "why why why did they add that rule!"

Kind of like the last Giants/Eagles game, if the Giants didnt want to kick to Desean and were forced to, and that TD happened...I just think having the option to kick to the guy or not is the best way to go.

[Dan T.]

Fun fact #2. Forward passes used to be illegal in football.

"I have smashing idea' date=' gents. Let's make it legal for quarterbacks to toss the ball forward to their teammates! That would make the game of foot ball much more exciting! 23 Skidoo!"[/size']

"One of the most ludicrous rules I've ever heard proposed"...

"no offense to you personally' date=' but this is one of the dumbest things I've heard."[/size']

[jnhay]

No. I don't like strategy to be taken out of the game. Most of the time, a team is punished any way for punting out of bounds because the ball is usually still going after it goes out of bounds.