The player safety angle is to give the kick return team an incentive not to run it back. Any time the ball is kicked to that 15 to 5 yard line range they have to make a decision, run it back and take their chances or fair catch it and bury their team deep in the other team's territory. Right now there is absolutely no incentive to fair catch the ball and not try to run it back on a kickoff return.
Also note that fair catches on a kickoff are very rare right now (think about it, how many times have you seen a fair catch on a kickoff?). Unless there was some sort of mishap that sent the ball somewhere it shouldn't have went, the receiver usually has plenty of time to catch and start running the ball back (in that 20 to 0 yard line range). The fair catch is most prevalent on punts, which I don't think are included in this rule. This new rule's goal is to greatly reduce the number of kickoffs actually returned.
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