Does anyone know why they don’t wear those safety cushions over the helmet during games? (1 Viewer)

[Alan12]

The league isn't actually concerned about player safety.

I mean, of course the League cares about player safety! That's why they're trying to protect the players from scrambling their own brains into mush in practice so the players can instead... scramble their own brains into mush during the actual games when it really matters and the money is flowing its heaviest!



/s (for those a bit dense)

 

[Grumpy Old Manatee]

Maybe ask one of these dudes?

 

[jboss]

They don't do anything to stop concussions. This is all just safety theater. A concussion occurs when your brain slams into the interior of your skull due to a collision. No amount of padding will help that.

I actually went to an event once where Dr. Julian Bales was the speaker. He's a Louisiana native and was then head of the department of neurosurgery at West Virginia University. He had also worked with Bennet Omalu on CTE research.

Anyway, he basically said that while everyone should always be trying to make the game safer, there's not really much that can be done externally or equipment wise to curb concussions without changing the game completely. A game in which gigantic men smash into each other at high rates of speed is going to cause concussive and sub-concussive brain injury, even if their heads are wrapped in pillows.

One hill I will always die on is that helmets need to have just enough padding to protect the skull and be comfortable to wear. These guys put their heads down because it doesn't hurt most of the time when they do. If there was less padding players would naturally be less inclined to lower their heads for impact.

 

[Dan in Lafayette]

I do not subscribe to The Athletic, but the following article was available to me. Interesting read on the Guardian Caps.

'This isn't a magic pill.' Will foam helmet caps help or hinder NFL player safety?

Some think the extra layer makes a positive difference while others believe it could have a negative effect.

theathletic.com

 

[Scorpius the Allfather]

Is it just about aesthetics?

If those reduce concussions, why not wear them at all times?

Because they don't really care about player safety. They care about the IMAGE that they care about player safety. If they really cared, teams would have the week off prior to a Thursday night game.

 

[Excelsior88]

Think about the egg experiments from high school. You can protect that egg and keep it from cracking all you want, but the likelihood of keeping the yolk from scrambling inside the egg shell after a very quick deceleration is darn near impossible.

The brain, sitting in its own protective "liquid", moves independent of the skull. As others have said, external protection does nothing except maybe intensify the acceleration/ deceleration forces as players get faster and braver due to their helmet "protection".

 

[bclemms]

I think it was on the Pat McAfee Show the other day where they showed a big college team figured out an AC fan in their helmets...
The Guardian caps are good for practice, but not sure that players would like that for games?

LSU has them.

 

[King_Kamala61]

It looks like specially ribbed reservoir for Trojan

 

[GrandAdmiral]

The league knows they'd never be able to sell them, so we'll never see them on the field.

 

[ItFan]

They don't do anything to stop concussions. This is all just safety theater. A concussion occurs when your brain slams into the interior of your skull due to a collision. No amount of padding will help that.

I actually went to an event once where Dr. Julian Bales was the speaker. He's a Louisiana native and was then head of the department of neurosurgery at West Virginia University. He had also worked with Bennet Omalu on CTE research.

Anyway, he basically said that while everyone should always be trying to make the game safer, there's not really much that can be done externally or equipment wise to curb concussions without changing the game completely. A game in which gigantic men smash into each other at high rates of speed is going to cause concussive and sub-concussive brain injury, even if their heads are wrapped in pillows.

Pretty sure that padding decelerates the impact of the brain inside the skull. Though huge amounts of it would be needed at current levels of speed

 

[greg8710]

I have to say that was my first thought when I first saw teams utilitizng these ridiculous looking things. If it keeps players safe in practice, why arent they using them in games?

Then it becomes pretty obvious why they arent using them in games.....Its because they are ridiculous looking. And optics > player safety.

This seems like PERFECT evidence for lawsuits from players down the road.

Awww…. How democratic of you

 

[Semper]

I like all the league doesn’t care comments. That’s most likely true. We as fans don’t care either. I will use boxing as an example. I started seeing what was happening to these men and quit watching. If we cared we would quit watching the NFL. But we don’t. We help grow the problem. We spend tons of money. Plan meals and family events around the game. We cheer when we see a massive collision and post highlights on the news and sports channels. I would say the NFL cares more than we do. They need these players on the field to entertain us.

 

[UFCSaint]

Drew would've not been able to see over his lineman... Even tiptoeing

 

[Semper]

If player safety was the most important thing concussion protocol would be more strict. Instead the player is evaluated and given the go ahead sometimes a few days later. Personally I think a concussion means you’re done for a month. A second concussion you’re done for the year. The players are also at fault. Look at Tua as an example. How many reported concussions last year? How quickly was he trying to come back and play? The Bills player died on the field and we are celebrating him for making it back this year and playing.

 

[BigFrosty]

I'm guessing their angle is that in practice you may not be expecting to be hit by an over achieving player, while in a game, you would be prepared for it.