Harrison Butker’s 69-yard field goal in the Kansas City Chiefs’ second preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was the kind of strike that instantly grabbed everyone’s attention. For a kicker of Butker’s caliber, the make itself wasn’t shocking - but the distance still made it a rare sight.
That kick has already sparked a bigger conversation about where the NFL might be headed. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated floated the possibility that the league could one day look at changing the goalposts to make field goals tougher.
“Harrison Butker’s 69-yard field goal was wild-it did look like it might’ve been good from 75. It also makes you wonder if we’re getting close to a point where the NFL looks at tightening the goalposts or something to make field goals more challenging. I’d be against that because I hate punishing people for being good at something,” Breer wrote.
For now, though, there’s little reason to think one long preseason kick should trigger any rule change. Tightening the goalposts would be a heavy-handed response, especially when plenty of kickers are still fighting to make kicks from much shorter range. It would be a different conversation if 60-plus yarders were becoming routine across the league.
Butker’s own track record also matters here. He’s one of the better kickers in the NFL, so a deep attempt like that fits with what he’s capable of.
A league-wide change still feels unlikely, but the kick does set up an interesting next step: whether teams start giving their kickers more chances from that distance once the regular season begins.
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Chiefs Roster Shuffle Already Sent One Defender To A New AFC Team
The Chiefs linebacker depth took another turn this week when the club released Anthony Dunn, a defensive end-linebacker who quickly landed with the New York Jets. Kansas City needed the roster space to make room for Cam Jones, with injuries already thinning the linebacking corps and forcing another adjustment as the team tries to stabilize that part of the defense.
Dunns move gives the Jets a fresh look at a player who was pushed out of a crowded Chiefs roster situation rather than a lack of interest elsewhere. New York brought him in to replace Nate Voorhis with one week left before active roster cuts, a reminder of how quickly the bottom of the roster can change as teams across the league sort through injuries, depth concerns and the final evaluation window. [Read more 🡒]
Chiefs Long Shot Is Suddenly Forcing A Tough Roster Call
Ethan Hurketts path with the Chiefs has already taken a couple of turns, and now the undrafted rookie free agent has worked his way back into the conversation after an early release and a quick re-signing following a season-ending injury to another player. Joining training camp late did not stop him from getting on the field in preseason games, where he logged a notable share of defensive snaps and earned a favorable look from the coaching staff.
The challenge for Kansas City is deciding how much of that late momentum to bank on. Hurkett still looks like a long shot to crack the 53-man roster, but his performance has made him a real candidate for the practice squad and, possibly, a player other teams could notice if he is exposed. For a team always weighing depth and development at the back end of the roster, that creates a small but meaningful decision to sort through. [Read more 🡒]
Chiefs Changed The NFL Spotlight In A Way That Raises Questions
Taylor Swifts presence at Chiefs games has done more than add another star to the suites. It has pushed Kansas City and the NFL into a brighter, broader spotlight, drawing more media attention and clearly widening the leagues reach with younger and more casual viewers. For a franchise that already sits at the center of the sports modern conversation, the added attention has become part of the weekly routine.
The bigger question is what the league does with it now. The commercial pull of the Swift effect is obvious, but so is the risk of the conversation drifting away from the players and the game itself. League observers see a chance to turn temporary curiosity into longer-term football interest, even as they acknowledge the bump may not last forever. [Read more 🡒]