Every year around late March, NFL executives, owners, and coaches meet to discuss and vote on potential rule changes for the upcoming season. Although owners hold the voting power, executives and coaches are allowed to voice their opinions on the proposed amendments. With the NFL holding their annual league meeting last week, there was plenty to discuss. Here’s a snapshot of most of the rule changes for the upcoming 2025 season along with some that didn’t pass ─ at least not yet.

Tush Push

The Tush Push is here to stay ─ at least for now. After the Green Bay Packers proposed a ban on the Eagles signature play, they only garnered the support of 16 NFL teams. The NFL Bylaws require at least 24 votes to approve a change.

With the proposal not receiving enough support around the league, the Packers are considering shifting the focus to reinstating the rule that prohibits you from pushing the ball carrier downfield. This is a rule that was changed before the 2005 season due to its difficulty to officiate.

Although, the NFL’s health and safety department has zero data to suggest a single injury has occurred because of the Eagles or any other team using this play, those in favor of banning the play have cited “safety concerns” as one of their reasons.

This issue will likely be revisited when owners meet again for their spring meeting May 20-21.

Overtime

Since 2010, the team that received the ball to start overtime had the chance to end the game by scoring a touchdown on their first possession of the period. This is not the case anymore. The new rule change allows both teams a chance to possess the ball in overtime during the regular season.

This change comes two years after the NFL altered the postseason OT rules to give both teams a chance to possess the ball. During Super Bowl 58 we saw our first real look at this new rule. According to the NFL Films footage of players “mic’d up,” many players on the 49ers sideline weren’t entirely sure of the rules, while players on the Chiefs sideline were ecstatic and shocked the 49ers chose to receive the ball after winning the coin toss.

That series of events may lead many to believe that most teams will choose to defer at the start of overtime, rather than receiving the ball, in order to know how many points they will need to win when they inevitably get the ball back.

Kickoff Rules

NFL owners approved a rule change to the kickoff structure for the second year in a row. The change stipulates that a touchback on kickoffs will now result in the ball being placed at the 35-yard line. This rule change comes after last year’s revamped kickoff structure saw coaches being more willing to yield a touchback more often than the league had anticipated and have the ball spotted at the 30-yard line.

This change aligns with the league’s vision of more returns on kickoffs in their attempt to revive what was once a nearly obsolete play. Last year’s rule changes resulted in the return rate rising from its lowest point in the modern era, at 22%, to a return rate of 32.8%. The amendments also led to a 43% decrease in concussions on kickoffs compared to 2023.

League officials and special team coaches are expecting this change to prompt a significant increase in the return rate. It will provide fans with more of a spectacle during kickoffs and give return specialists greater opportunities to showcase their talent, rather than the kickoff becoming a near ritualistic play where fans can step out for a beer.

Replay Technology

Out with the old and in with the new. The NFL has decided to do away with its use of the outdated “chain gang” as the primary method to determine if a player has reached the required distance for a first down.

For the 2025 season, Sony’s Hawk-Eye virtual measurement system, which uses six 8k cameras, will be the new method for measuring first downs. This change follows extensive discussions about the archaic way the NFL has been measuring first downs, along with a controversial call in last year’s AFC Championship game between the Bills and the Chiefs.

Although the “chain gang” will still stand on the sidelines, they will serve as secondary option. The league said in a news release regarding the new technology that it is “an efficient alternative to the process of walking chains onto the field and manually measuring whether 10 yards have been met after the official has spotted the ball.”

More Throwbacks

NFL teams will now be able to wear their throwback or alternate jerseys up to four times during the regular season. This is an increase from the previous limit of three, which will give teams with unique throwback jerseys, such as the Eagles with their “Kelly Green” uniforms, more opportunities to showcase their popular alternates.

In addition, players can also wear their alternate pants in the playoffs. These two changes should make for some more fun jersey combinations and give fans more of a reason to wear-and buy-alternate jerseys.

Wipe Your Nose

The league giveth, and they taketh away. The NFL hasn’t earned the nickname “No Fun League” for no reason.

In this year’s rendition of the “No Fun League”, the NFL has decided to rewrite their unsportsmanlike conduct criteria to include “any violent gesture, which shall include but not be limited to a throat slash, simulating firing or brandishing a gun, or using the “nose wipe” gesture, or an act that is sexually suggestive or offensive.”

This means no more finger guns, nose wipes, or air humps when a touchdown is scored or first down is gained without a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty following it. It’s comical considering teams such as the Patriots, Buccaneers, and Saints use muskets and cannons to celebrate touchdowns, but finger guns are where the NFL draws the line.