Donald Trump has been a vocal critic of the NFL’s “dynamic kickoff” ever since it was introduced in 2024, and he did not miss a chance to condemn it again on Tuesday.
During Tuesday’s episode of Pat McAfee’s eponymous ESPN show, the US President said about the rule via phone call:
“I hate the kickoff in football. I think it’s so terrible, so demeaning. I think it hurts the game. I’ve told that to Roger Goodell. And I don’t think it’s any safer. I mean, you still have guys crashing into each other. The ball is in the air and nobody is moving. It’s supposed to be when the ball is in the air, you’re supposed to be moving.”
He continued:
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“The pageantry of the game is so badly hurt. The NFL, they do what they want to do. I don’t think they’ll change. I hope college football doesn’t change, because the power of the kickoff was so beautiful.”
The comments come after Trump was seen watching the Washington Commanders play the Detroit Lions on Sunday, becoming the first sitting US President since 1978 to attend a regular-season NFL game. He had gone there to honor military veterans during halftime, but he was loudly booed when the PA announcer at Northwest Stadium introduced him.
Donald Trump says top NFL HC’s like Eagles’ Nick Sirianni could be great Presidents, generals
In the same show appearance, Donald Trump claimed that Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni would be among those who would make a good President:
“He’s some coach. He’s great. They had a lot of talented people… Great leader.”
He continued by claiming that some other coaches in the league would be fit to be generals in a war:
“I always thought, you see some of the good strategy. Every once in a while you see some pretty bad strategy, too. But we go out and we get the best four or five coaches, put them in a room, if you’re going to war, and use them, because they do it. Ultimately, it’s all about strategy.”
He also shared some details of his conversation with Fox commentators Kenny Albert and Jonathan Vilma during the Commanders-Lions game:
“I talked about (how) sports to me is like a microcosm of life. You see the winning and the losing and the comebacks, the routes, everything. … Life is very much like that, you have to fight… no matter what the circumstance. … Ultimately, you’ve got to win … It’s ‘What have you done for me lately?’”
Week 11 of the NFL season begins with the New England Patriots facing the New York Jets this coming Thursday. Kickoff is at 8:15 pm ET on Amazon Prime Video.