It really depends on your stride and general form, doesn't it? It sounds reasonable that overstriding (landing with your foot ahead of the imaginary vertical line passing through your body) would place a lot of pressure on the knee, which would result in long-term damage. The same goes for the landing, it's easier on the body to make good use of the natural mechanism present in the arch of the foot by landing on the mid-foot (ball of the foot).

Daniel Lieberman (Harvard professor) has excellent research on the subject for those interested.