A 'cold foot' and NFL's current kickoff rules test the Titans' special teams

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Titans have one of the NFL’s most respected special teams coordinators and a kicker with a strong leg.

Yet they’re struggling mightily when it comes to kickoffs.

“We need to get better at it,” Titans coach Robert Saleh said. “We need to make teams return the kick, we need to cover kicks, we need to find ways to create advantageous situations coming off a kickoff.”

The Titans are worst in the NFL with 66.7% touchbacks on kickoffs. The rest of the league is averaging 16.8%, and the next-highest team is the Carolina Panthers at 38.5%. The average starting field position after kickoffs is the 37-yard line for the Titans' opponents, tied with Miami for the NFL's worst. The league average is 30.8.

The NFL experimented with the so-called dynamic kickoff in 2024 in hopes of more returns while also making the play safer. Owners voted in April 2025 to make the change permanent while moving touchbacks on kicks that reach the end zone on the fly from the 30 to the 35. They got more returns, which they wanted.

Saleh said Joey Slye does a really good job especially with his "dirty ball" getting on the ground forcing returns. The next chance for the Titans (0-2) to show improvement comes Sunday on the road against the New York Giants (1-1).

“Trying to knock people inside the 25-yard line because the touchback is 35, it’s significant," Saleh said. "So if you can kick that dirty ball and keep them inside the 25-yard line, that’s significant, and Joey’s been good.”

Special teams coordinator John Fassel said Thursday that Slye has had a bit of a “cold foot." They went to Nissan Stadium this week to further work on fixing those kickoff issues. The coordinator also loves that everyone wants the kickoff in play, saying “before it was like it was forgotten.”

“I’m excited about what’s to come," Fassel said. "We’ve missed a few opportunities, but we’ll get it, there’s no doubt.”

Slye pushed his first kickoff of the season out of bounds against the New York Jets putting the ball at the 40. His kickoff to open the second half in Week 2 landed around the Philadelphia 30 and was flagged for landing short of the approved landing zone. That put the Eagles at their 40 in a 24-20 loss by the Titans.

The kicker has what he calls a “spiral turnover” on a kick designed to go high and from the peak dip down suddenly.

Slye said the new kickoff rules have kickers still trying to find exactly what works best for each one on getting the ball on the ground consistently to force kickoff returns.

“I’m still a little bit kind of working through that of fixing a couple things here and there but have an idea of how to fix that pretty easily,” Slye said. "It’s just execution in the game.”

Fassel said the Titans have been trying to be aggressive on kickoffs. One challenge has been the K-balls used for kicking in practice aren't as “plump" and “nice” as on game days. Add in the adrenaline of game day, and it's easy to kick the ball further than desired.

“Too much talking for a subject that’s pretty simple that we’ll get tightened up,” Fassel said.

AP Pro Football Writer Josh Dubow contributed to this report from San Francisco.

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