Cheesehead
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- Mar 19, 2019
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"It's made the play safer but it has made it harder," Packers special teams coordinator Shawn Mennenga said of the alignment rules. "I don't know if (the proposed measure is) gonna lead to a greater success rate or not. I just know with the rules it has made it harder. It's what it is, so we gotta try to find a creative way to get a kick in there that maybe we can hit it into a certain area and bring a fold guy in (from the other side) and those type of things."
It's important to note the proposal still allows teams to attempt a traditional onside kick. If enacted, the fourth-and-15 measure would give teams another option to maintain possession.
Packers kicker Mason Crosby was one of the league's most productive kickers on onside attempts before the league changed alignment rules. Kicking teams are now required to have five players on each side of the kicker, with two outside the numbers on each side.
The two-year decline has led to the idea of a fourth-and-15 play gaining more momentum, though it was shot down during a vote at last year's NFL owners meetings.
Mennenga has read through the proposal and is prepared to "adapt" if it is ratified this week. As a lifelong special-teams coach, however, a part of him wouldn't want to see the onside kick – or any special-teams play – go by the wayside.
"Whatever the league decides, we'll be ready to go," Mennenga said. "I know there'll be some tweaks to everything and there'll have to be some things worked out, depending on how it all unfolds, but we'll be ready to go with whatever happens."
The danger for both sides is the risk of penalty. A defensive pass interference call or holding penalty would result in an automatic first down for the offense.