[Elvis]

NFL had 182 concussions this season, down 17 percent from '23

Kevin Seifert
Jan 30, 2025

The NFL this season recorded its fewest number of concussions since it began tracking the data in 2015, the league announced Thursday.

The total of 182 concussions during games and practices in both the preseason and regular season represented a 17% drop from 2023. The previous low for the same time period was 187 in 2022, not counting the 2020 season when COVID protocols canceled the preseason.

The five-year average, not counting 2020, was 211.4 per season.

"We're very pleased with the concussion numbers but not at all suggesting that the work is done," said Dr. Allen Sills, the NFL's chief medical officer. "We still have a lot to do to continue to make the game safer and reduce not only concussions, but to reduce avoidable head impact."

Sills and Jeff Miller, the NFL's executive vice president overseeing player health and safety, attributed the 2024 drop to a series of factors that included helmet quality and the mandatory use of Guardian Caps for most players during training camp and regular season practices. The concussion rate dropped by 43% on the league's newly designed kickoff, but there was the same total number of concussions on kickoffs in 2024 (eight) as in 2023 because the rule created more overall returns.

According to Sills , 35% of all players upgraded their helmet quality in 2024 based on the rankings published annually by the NFL and NFL Players Association. Typically, Sills said, that rate is between 14% and 17%. In addition, about a third of players who were eligible wore helmets specifically designed for their positions.



The NFL, meanwhile, began mandating the use of Guardian Caps in practice for players at certain positions in 2022 and expanded it to include all positions except quarterbacks and specialists in 2023. The league had previously attributed a 50% reduction in concussions for players who wore them during those time periods. Some helmet models performed well enough in NFL/NFLPA testing that players who used them were exempt from Guardian Cap mandates.

"I think we can say with a high degree of confidence that the use of Guardian Caps plus the Guardian Cap-optional helmets, has certainly provided a sustained reduction in the number of concussions that we're seeing in that preseason practice environment," Sills said.

About 20 players wore Guardian Caps during regular-season games by their choice, Miller said. Sills, however, said that number was too small to generate reliable data on whether they received any benefit.

In other NFL health and safety news:

The new kickoff rule coincided in a drop with the play's overall injury rate, bringing it roughly even with all other plays from scrimmage, Miller said. Historically, the injury rate on kickoffs has been between two and four times that of other plays.

No players received on-field penalties for violating the new rule that prohibits hip-drop tackles. But Miller said roughly 30 players were either fined or received warning letters after review of game film by league officials, the kind of after-action enforcement the league suggested it would use as officials learned to spot the mechanics of the foul in real time.

The NFL has developed a new data point that measures the effects of plays that include helmet impact of where at least one of the players is traveling at least 15 miles per hour. Early results show that such hits lead to a concussion rate 26 times higher than normal plays.

[Elvis]

NFL says improved helmets contributed to significant reduction in concussions

Michael David Smith
Published April 11, 2025

The NFL says players suffered the fewest concussions in 2024 since the league began systematically tracking concussion data, and better helmets are a major contributor.

The league approved 12 new helmet models and found through both laboratory testing and players’ on-field results that those were among the safest helmets football players have ever had available to them. The helmet models that performed worse in laboratory testing also resulted in a concussion rate 30 percent higher. Players are being advised not to wear those helmets going forward.

NFL Executive V.P. Jeff Miller, who oversees health and safety in the league office, touted the continuing improvement of helmet design as a significant success.

“It is another major step forward for player safety that the laboratory testing of the best helmets equated with lower injury rates on-field. The top-ranked helmets are performing as predicted – there is a significant decrease in concussion rates for the players wearing them,” Miller said in a statement. “Our goal is to encourage all players to move into better-performing helmets for the 2025 season.”

Miller also said the NFL’s new kickoff rules led to a reduction in concussions on kickoffs that also contributed to the 2024 season seeing an overall reduction in concussions.

[Rams1PlateSince1976]

I wonder if there has been analysis into items like:
- position most likely to get concussion.
- players involved in the hit that resulted in concussion.
- % of concussions caused by friendly fire. (we had a safety a few years ago (McDonald?? who concussed several teammates.
- weather conditions (especially temperature) when concussion occurred. ((might have a head wrap on when cold)) ((and some players might lay off slightly on hits when frigid plus ground harder when frigid))
- dropped on the ground/floor when a baby?

[BobCarl]

I wonder if there has been analysis into items like:
- position most likely to get concussion.
- players involved in the hit that resulted in concussion.
- % of concussions caused by friendly fire. (we had a safety a few years ago (McDonald?? who concussed several teammates.
- weather conditions (especially temperature) when concussion occurred. ((might have a head wrap on when cold)) ((and some players might lay off slightly on hits when frigid plus ground harder when frigid))
- dropped on the ground/floor when a baby?

I think there has been analysis, but not by sports journalists, as they are not qualified to bring forth a valid evaluation