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With the first week of the season kicking off on Thursday night, now seems like a good time to brush up on a few of the NFL's biggest rule changes that were made this year. 

The NFL's 32 owners approved several new rule changes for 2025 and we're going to check out five of the biggest ones below. 

Touchbacks will be moving out to the 35-yard line

The NFL made one of the most dramatic rule changes in league history last year with the introduction of the dynamic kickoff. 

Under last year's rule, the touchback was at the 30-yard line, but starting with the 2025 season, the touchback will be moved out to the 35-yard line. The change is being made with the hope that it will discourage the kicking team from simply booting the ball out of the end zone on a kickoff knowing that the return team will automatically get the ball at the 35-yard line. Getting the ball at the 35 is huge, because that means a team would need to gain just 20 to 25 yards to get into field goal range. The league's internal data shows a 65% to 75% return rate if the touchback is moved to the 35, more than double the rate in the 2024 season. 

The NFL also approved a small change to the onside kick rule. Under the old rule, a team could only attempt an onside kick in the fourth quarter and they had to be trailing. Under the new rule, onside kicks are now permitted at ANY point in the game, but the team attempting the kick still has to be trailing. 

First downs will be measured electronically

Fans have been wondering for years why the NFL can't just electronically measure a first down, and now, the league is finally doing it. The NFL will be using Sony's Hawk-Eye technology as the primary method for measuring first downs in 2025. The new measurement system was on display in the Hall of Fame Game. 

Although the chain gang is being replaced, it's not going away just yet. The chain gang will still be on the field in 2025 to serve as the backup crew in case there are any issues with the new technology

Replay assist can now help with even more penalties

The officials in the replay booth could see a little more action this year because replay assist has been given more power. There are now five more penalties that can be overturned by the booth: hitting a defenseless player, face mask, horse-collar tackle, tripping and roughing/running into the kicker. One notable aspect of the new rules is that replay assist will not call penalties that weren't flagged on the field. For instance, if an obvious face mask is missed on the field, replay assist can't go back and tell the referee to throw a penalty on the play. However, if a face mask flag is thrown on a play where a face mask didn't actually happen, then replay assist can step in to have the flag picked up. The NFL is limiting the scope of replay assist to objective penalties that can be overturned with "clear and obvious" video evidence

Overtime just got more interesting

The NFL's overtime rule will be changing for 2025, but only for the regular season. The NFL owners have voted to align the regular-season overtime rules more closely with the postseason overtime rules. Under the OT rules in the postseason, the period is 15 minutes long and both teams are guaranteed a possession, even if the team that gets the ball first scores a touchdown. 

Both teams will now be guaranteed a possession during regular-season overtime, but the OT period will only be 10 minutes long. Under the previous regular-season rule, the team that got the ball first could win the game by scoring a touchdown on their first possession, but that's no longer the case

Overtime for the postseason will remain the same. 

Bow and Arrow is back

The NFL handed out a fine to an Eagles player in the Super Bowl for using the bow-and-arrow celebration, but starting in 2025, players won't be punished for using it. During a rules session with the media back in August, NFL referee Land Clark said that the league won't be looking to penalize players who do the bow-and-arrow celebration. Clark did note that the NFL will continue to crack down on violent gestures, so players will still be penalized for any celebration that involves "guns, knives or weapons," but the bow and arrow will be allowed. 

Although the 'archer pose' is now permitted, there is one exception to this rule: Players could still be flagged if they aim their imaginary bow and arrow at an opponent. 

We've got a full primer of things you need to know before the start of the season and you can check that out here.