Health and safety has been a priority of the NFL and recently, the enforcement of Concussion Protocol has expanded due to the spike in the number of concussions documented each year.
271 concussions were reported in 2015. 234 of those occurred in-game, and 37 in practice. That is a staggering 32 percent total rise and a 58 percent regular-season in-game rise (182 in 2014 to 234 in 2015).
The issue has been growing as players get bigger, faster, stronger. However, yesterday, the NFL and NFLPA announced the NFL Game Day Concussion Protocol and its procedures in disciplining the clubs who do not follow the new rules.
The Concussion Protocol will be consistently reviewed to ensure that players are receiving the care and attention reflected by the most up to date medical consensus.
The policy states that the NFL and NFLPA will each designate a representative to monitor the protocol implementation and investigate potential violations. Prior to the investigation, if the NFL and NFLPA review the findings and determine a violation, the matter will be discussed through a third party and a report will be issued to the Commissioner, NFLPA Executive Director and the involved party.
If a matter is deemed as a violation, the following disciplinary actions will take place:
- A first violation will require the club employees or medical team members involved to attend remedial education; and/or result in a maximum fine of $150,000 against the club.
- Second and subsequent violations of the concussion protocol will result in a minimum fine of $100,000 against the club.
- In the event the parties agree that a violation involved aggravating circumstances, the club shall be subject, in the first instance, to a fine no less than $50,000. The Commissioner shall determine appropriate discipline for subsequent violations involving aggravating circumstances.
- In the event that the Commissioner determines that the club’s medical team failed to follow the protocol due to competitive considerations, the Commissioner may require the club to forfeit draft pick(s) and impose additional fines exceeding those amounts set forth above.
The NFL and NFLPA have been working to improve player health and safety outside of the Concussion Protocol as well. Launching programs such as, the NFL Electronic Medical Record System, the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network, the Field Surface & Performance Committee, the Unaffiliated Neurotrauma Consultant Program and the Independent Athletic Trainer Spotter Program.
All of these programs aid the development of player safety and help in creating an environment where players can strictly focus on football. Among those programs the NFL and NFLPA also implemented:
- Through the Accountability & Care Committee and an independent Credentialing Verification Organization, the NFL and NFLPA implemented league-wide credentialing standards for all members of team medical staffs.
- The NFL, in collaboration with NFLPA-appointed experts, sponsored a study to assess the performance of football helmets worn by NFL players. A poster summarizing the results of the study hangs in all 32 NFL club locker rooms.
- The NFL and NFLPA jointly sponsored a study to assess the performance of football turf shoes worn by NFL players and determined that certain models presented an enhanced risk of injury.
With the game of football being one of the most violent in nature – it has been for decades – the actions of the NFL and NFLPA are monumental in curbing the injuries and protection and extension of a player’s career and life after football. The risks will never fully be removed from the game but this is a step in the right direction.