Bucs CB Jamel Dean weighs in on new NFL kickoff rule

Spoiler alert: He isn’t happy about it.

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The NFL world has been reacting to the league’s new special teams rule passed on Wednesday, and Bucs CB is among those dissatisfied.

Dean posted on Twitter Thursday to voice his discouragement with the NFL’s new rule on kickoffs, which designates that any fair catch inside the 25-yard line will result in the ball being placed at the 25-yard line. The rule change has been designated as only being in affect for the 2023 season.

Dean, who played on 28% of Tampa Bay’s special teams snaps in 2022, wasn’t impressed by the new change.

“We’re going to be playing tag or flag football after a while,” Dean tweeted.

Dean isn’t the only NFL player that has derided the new change. Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce called the new change “absolutely stupid” on his New Heights podcast and Ravens HC John Harbaugh recently spoke out against the rule change as well.

It will be interesting to see how the special teams aspect of the game changes with this new rule, and whether or not it will carry over to next year’s season.