Having a 12th player on the field is one of the easiest and most notorious penalties in the NFL. However, it could actually be legal in 2024, albeit under one very specific circumstance.
Veteran NFL official John Hussey has been giving presentations to teams regarding the league’s new kickoff rules, and those presentations included an interesting wrinkle. The NFL would allow a 12th man on the field during kickoffs to act as a holder if weather conditions require it, though the holder would not be allowed to interact with the play any further once the ball is kicked.
“They can’t do anything,” Hussey said, via PJ Green of FOX 4 Kansas City. “It would be a great fan experience. I don’t know, it’s going to be weird counting to 12.”
It would definitely be strange, though it is admittedly pretty difficult to accidentally get caught with an extra man on the field for a kickoff. It’s not entirely clear how this would look in practice, either: would the holder rush off the field once the ball is kicked, or would he have to stand there awkwardly and avoid getting involved in the play?
NFL coaches have a lot of questions about the new rules, which are designed to allow for more kick returns, but in a safer manner. The potential of a bonus player on the field is probably only going to confuse things more, at least initially.
