Dave Toub, Kansas City Chiefs special teams coach, expressed his thoughts on Donald Trump’s criticism of a new kickoff rule in the NFL.
“He doesn’t even know what he’s looking at. He has no idea what’s going on with the kickoff rule,” said the normally reserved Toub, his voice rising. “So take that for what it’s worth. And I hope he hears it.”
Two days after attending a regular-season game between the Washington Commanders and the Detroit Lions, Trump went on the Pat McAfee Show and blasted the league’s new dynamic kickoff rule, which owners voted to make permanent this year: When the ball is kicked from the 35-yard line, every player on the kicking team must wait at the 40 until the ball hits the ground or is touched by a returner inside the 20-yard line.
“I think it’s so terrible. I think it’s so demeaning, and I think it hurts the game. It hurts the pageantry,” Trump said. “I’ve told that to (NFL Commissioner) Roger Goodell, and I don’t think it’s any safer. I mean, you still have guys crashing into each other.”
Toub has coached special teams in Chicago and Kansas City for two decades, and the NFL maintains the new rule keeps players safer while producing more kickoff returns.
If anyone cares, here’s what the expert-on-everything had to say: