I'm already on record as saying that Kicking off from the 35 will have little impact in the NFL. To reiterate my points; It's only 5 yards. And the kick coverage team also has a new rule in place for them, no more 15 yard head starts to build to top speed. The coverage players have a 5 yard max now. I get a little deeper in my original post, but you get the gist of it. Even though I don't expect drastic changes in the return game, some Bears fans are worried the rule will hurt the offenses field position, but they fail to mention how it could help the defense.
I can understand how some fans are concerned that a rule designed to take away some of the excitement of kickoff returns (actually it's designed to thwart some of the full speed collisions... a safety thing...) would hurt a team that is so reliant on getting big run-backs. Devin Hester, Johnny Knox, and Danieal Manning of seasons past, were a huge part of what Chicago did. But the Bears, and their stellar special teams play, led by their stellar special teams coach Dave Toub, will find a way to make the new rule benefit them.
The Bears defense is one that tries to make an offense methodically march down-field. They don't want to give up big chunks of yards, with the thought that they'll eventually cause an offense to make a mistake via a turnover. If the Bears special teams can pin the opposition deeper in their own territory, their brand of field position football will weigh in their favor. The Tampa 2, at it's heart, is a bend but don't break D, with fast players converging on the ball. So in theory, the longer an offense has to go, the more opportunities the Bears will have to cause a turnover.
Helmet tip to Kev for inspiring this post.