SoCalSeahawk":ow329h1f said:
"Also, the receiving team can no longer initiate blocks before the ball is caught or hits the ground."
I'm reading this as the kicking team can now sprint unabated to the returner until the catch is made. With a hang time of 4.5 seconds, that puts most of the kick coverage team at the 25 yard line with a full head of steam before the receiving team can initiate contact. That doesn't seem like much of an opportunity for a return. If a kicker can buy more hang time with a shorter kick to the 5-10 yard line, this could mean fair catches on kickoffs. Anyone else seeing it this way?
I'm not sure how to see it, I hope the refs can eliminate the gray area I see, but the way it reads is that (in what equates to a 10 v 10 play) the refs are supposed to ascertain between "blocking" (illegal) and "pushing or pulling" (legal) to stop a player in either direction. On top of this they need to count players in their new legal "zones" pre-snap, and recognize said players various new blocking and movement rules post-snap.
Sounds like a new (maybe even worse) version of the overly complicated catch rule.