Mexico City /
The NFL and the NFL Players Association have made it mandatory to use the Guardian Cap covers on the helmets for certain positions during the training camp and preseasonin order to avoid concussions and contact to the head.
The joint resolution, approved during a morning session at the NFL’s annual owners meetings, will require that offensive and defensive linemen, tight ends and linebackers, wear the Guardian Caps for all practices between the start of the contact period in training camp, through the second preseason game.
The covers have soft cushions that adhere to the outside of the helmet, these are often used in college football; These articles reduce the force of contact to the head by up to 20 percent.
The mandate represents a significant first step in the league’s effort to eliminate all avoidable head contact, a goal that the NFL chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sillsannounced earlier this year.
“Even if there is no change to the number of concussions with this intervention,” Sills said, “we would still consider it worthwhile if it reduces the force each player receives.”
Head contact rate decreases after second preseason game, when most teams take on less of a physical workload. Players will be encouraged, but not required, to wear a Guardian Cap from then on.
– ESPN information –
