While the much-discussed tush-push vote was tabled until the league's May meeting, a number of other rules changes and adjustments were voted on Tuesday.
The league made last year's one-year experiment with the dynamic kickoff a permanent rule, though they did move the touchback spot to the 35-yard line. The hope is that this will lead to more returns.
The Panthers received a league high 112 kickoffs last season, which was the most in the league by a wide margin. Of that total, 66 were touchbacks taken at the 30, which was tied for fourth in the league. Competition committee chair Rich McKay told reporters that the league anticipates the rate of returns to go up to between 60 percent and 70 percent if the recommendation passes.
Last year, only 32.8 percent of kickoffs were returned, up from 21.8 the year before when a touchback placed the ball at the 20. There were 59 returns of 40 yards or more last year, the highest figure since 2016.
The league did not alter onside kick rules, though that could come up later.
The league also voted to make postseason and regular season overtime rules the same, giving both teams the ball in overtime. They also expanded the use of instant replay but voted against a proposal to eliminate the automatic first down for defensive holding and illegal contact.
While the Panthers are never going to be among the teams using the tush push as long as Bryce is the quarterback, Canales was hesitant to pile on with those who want to take away Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts' advantage.
"The statistics certainly don't say that it's a dangerous play, although there are concerns about the posture," he said. "And if it's about a competitive conversation, the Eagles just coach it better than the rest of us. So I don't want to take away a competitive advantage from a team that's figured out how to have the quarterback sneak so effective. The way they do it's a part of it, yes, but I think the conversations have been more about the player safety issue."