FLOWERY BRANCH — It was an off-day for Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo on Saturday in Baltimore. He missed three field-goal attempts in the exhibition game against the Ravens, the first time that has happened in his NFL career.
Something different about that game were the new NFL kickoff rules. Now, kickers kick off from their own 35-yard line, and the other 10 players from the kicking team will lineup on the opposing team’s 40-yard line. The receiving team will have at least nine players line up in the “set-up zone” between the 35- and 30-yard lines.
This rule was implemented for safety and efficiency of the kick-return plays, according to the NFL.
Koo made a great play with a recorded tackle during a kickoff, but did that affect the rest of his game?
“No, not at all,” Koo said. “I mean it shouldn’t either.”
Koo’s misses in the game had nothing to do with the weather or turf, but simply were ball-alignment issues, he said.
“Ball contact and the flight-wise, I knew I hit my ball that I liked, it was just an alignment issue that I have to strengthen out,” Koo said. “... I realized pre-game there was wind, but it wasn’t affecting the ball that much.”
To see the new kickoff rule in action was helpful to Koo, but the biggest learning curve for adjusting to the new rule is timing and the visual aspect, according to Koo.
“So, I can watch it in practice and stuff, but I got to kick off in Baltimore, and it was good to see that speed in-game,” Koo said. “Feeling the flow of things, it feels good to be out there.”
While Koo accepts the new kickoff rule, he doesn’t necessarily enjoy being in a position where he might receive contact from the receiving team.
“I know and fully understand I’m not here to make tackles, so I just wanted to see how the kickoff rule looked,” Koo said. “At the end of the day we don’t want the kicker in position to make tackles. ... Stay out the way because if I’m hurt, I’m not helping the team.”
The mindset for Koo is whether something is an opportunity for him to get better.
“Here and there, there will be misses, but I got to be better and making adjustments in the game,” Koo said. “I can’t have one miss become two, or three.”
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