Raheem Blackshear was ready to get out on the field. Fresh off signing a new contract to return to the Carolina Panthers, the running back and return specialist sat down with the same ease and settled spirit he always carries. But he’d just heard a new rule had passed at the annual NFL owners meeting, moving kickoff touchbacks from the 30-yard line to the 35-yard line, and he was itching to test it out.
“Right now, I’m about to actually go catch,” Blackshear shared, “so (I’m) going to see how it plays out.
Blackshear has been a part of kickoff changes before during his time in the NFL and with the Panthers. Last offseason, the league elected to move touchbacks to the 30-yard line. As a result, the return rate improved—with Blackshear clocking in at No. 2 overall in the league with 791 total return yards, averaging 25.5 yards per return—but touchbacks still constituted 64.3 percent of kickoffs.
Blackshear is already looking forward to the opportunities with the line being moved out 5 yards this coming season.
“I finally get a chance to bring the ball a lot more, so I’m excited for the rule,” Blackshear said. “I feel like it makes a significant difference, just moving the ball back a little bit more so we try to get the kick return in play.
“A lot of time they’re kicking into the back of the end zone, so it’s kind of hard for returners to get it out. And that that little yardage, right, is that big of a difference.”