NFL approves special helmet to prevent concussions

The NFL and the Professional Players Association (NFLPA) have approved the use of a special helmet for running backs designed to reduce concussions.

“This helmet performs better in lab tests than any helmet we’ve seen for those types of impacts,” said Jeff Miller, the NFL’s executive vice president of communications, public affairs and policy.

Vicis, a brand specializing in helmets, created this design to reduce injuries to linebackers when they hit their heads on the ground after being tackled during games.

The executive stated that those hits account for about half of the concussions suffered by quarterbacks.

“We’ve talked to our engineers and the Players Association about over 1,000 concussions on the field, we have a pretty good database of how these injuries occur,” Jeff Miller said.

Offensive and defensive players are the other players on the field who also have a specially protected design.

The league is looking at different ways to prevent concussions after an increase in concussions in the 2022 season.

According to the NFL, there were 149 concussions in 271 games last season, 18 percent more than 126 in 2021, and 14 percent above the 2018-20 average of 130.

As part of actions to reduce those injuries, last March the NFL announced the mandatory use of “Guardian Caps” (padded covers over helmets) in all contact drills that teams have before and during the 2023 season to prevent injuries.