TAKING A PUNT

Trump Directs His Ire Towards New Enemy: ‘Sissy Football’

“The NFL has to get rid of that ridiculous looking new Kickoff Rule,” the president ranted on Truth Social.

President Donald Trump has found a new target for his trademark outrage—the NFL’s revamped kickoff rule.

In a Truth Social post, the president blasted the league’s new kickoff format, calling it “ridiculous looking” and claiming it makes the game “sissy football.”

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“The NFL has to get rid of that ridiculous looking new Kickoff Rule,” Trump, whose favorite NFL team was once reportedly the New England Patriots, wrote in one of several Monday morning missives.

Ignoring the focus on safety, using a word sometimes deemed a slur and administering childlike logic, he continued: “How can they make such a big and sweeping change so easily and quickly. It’s at least as dangerous as the ‘normal’ kickoff, and looks like hell. The ball is moving, and the players are not, the exact opposite of what football is all about. ‘Sissy’ football is bad for America, and bad for the NFL!”

Trump compared the rule change to efforts in professional golf to “roll back” the ball, saying, “Fortunately, college football will remain the same, hopefully forever!!”

The NFL adopted the new kickoff format this season, shifting players into a stationary formation until the ball is caught or hits the ground, with the aim of reducing high-speed collisions and concussions.

The rule also places touchbacks at the 35-yard line rather than the 30. Uncertainty over the rule appeared to play a role in a touchdown handed to the Seattle Seahawks during their 31-17 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

Rookie running back and kick returner Kaleb Johnson let a kickoff slip through his hands. Instead of pursuing the ball, he walked off the field—allowing Seattle’s George Holani to pounce on it in the end zone for a touchdown that stretched the Seahawks’ lead.

“If I wasn’t sure [of the rule], or I was sure, it doesn’t matter,” Johnson said afterward. “I still got to go in there and execute the way it needs to be executed.”

Critics, like Trump, say the rule change disrupts the pace and spectacle of the game, while league officials argue it will boost returns and improve player safety.

League executive Jeff Miller previously said the rule was implemented to make “one of the most dangerous plays in the game considerably safer.” Data shows that it has helped power a 43 percent reduction in concussion rates on kickoff plays.

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Trump has devoted a chunk of his presidency to meddling with the NFL, or at least trying to. He has urged the Washington Commanders to revert to their problematic former name, the Redskins.

“I wouldn’t have changed the name. It just doesn’t have the same... it doesn’t have the same ring to me,” he told reporters in July after the team dropped the name due to renewed criticism from Native American groups. He was less conciliatory in a Truth Social post later that month when he demanded the Commanders “IMMEDIATELY change their name back.”

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Also in Trump’s sights Monday morning was Washington, D.C. In another post, he threatened to declare a national emergency in the city to ensure his crime crackdown survives.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell got his regular slating, while New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, by endorsing “communist” New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani, also got in Trump’s crosshairs. “This is a rather shocking development, and a very bad one for New York City. How can such a thing happen? Washington will be watching this situation very closely,” he ranted.

He later teased that a deal has been reached with China to keep TikTok in the United States. “A deal was also reached on a ‘certain’ company that young people in our Country very much wanted to save. They will be very happy!” he said.

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