Broncos ST coach Rizzi: Coordinators want NFL to restrict holders on kickoffs

Denver special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi says his counterparts around the league are nearly unanimous: the NFL should change how the holder rule operates on kickoffs so it is used for weather, not to create an advantage for the kicking team.

Under the dynamic kickoff rule, a 12th player can take the field as a holder with or without a tee, as long as that player runs off immediately after the kick. The intent was to keep the ball on the tee in windy conditions, but Rizzi argues teams have found a loophole — most notably the Eagles in Week 2, who used a holder to place the ball on the ground at an odd angle, changing the kick's trajectory and making it harder to return.

Rizzi helped organize a conference call of special teams coordinators, and said almost everyone agreed the league should officiate it so kickoffs are on a tee and holders are reserved for weather. "We don't want the ball on the edge, we don't want the ball on the ground, we don't want the ball held sideways. We just want a regular kickoff," Rizzi said, adding that it is a work in progress that has not been remedied yet.

He drew a parallel to the 2022 administrative change that stopped the Raiders from using a holder to place the football on top of the tee, and said he believes the league will act again.