Any predictions for the future to help prevent concussions?

I`ll throw one out there. I don`t think we will ever see flag football, but I can see something coming.

I think the NFL will outlaw delivering a blow to a receiver with the intention to dislodge/prevent a catch.

Later, they may go beyond just receivers and say "wrap up" tacking only or it`s a personal foul.

With this concussion thing being exposed, they will be forced to do something IMO.

 

They need to take away the heavy hardened plastic/metal pads, helmets, and facemasks if they are truly concerned about concussions. Still allows the bad dudes to be bad, but will drastically reduce player-to-player impact concussions.

 

Steve Wallace style helmets. Double up. XD

 

Yep,,put these boys back in the gear of the olden days(see avatar) ,,that will make them relearn the true fundamentals of the game real quick !
Hines said it best !

 

Yep, I think the helmet as protection has backfired and now it is used as a weapon. I can see more penalties for using the helmet for any type of contact. Might be a good thing. The common parallel is rugby - violent sport, but to my knowledge few concussions. No helmets.

 

The best thing I think the players can do to reduce concussions is don't play professional football. I'm not saying I want anyone to suffer head trauma or anything like that but I mean these guys have to understand that if they want to work out and get all huge and strong and then plow in to each other as hard as they possibly can then there are gonna be some health risks associated with that. It would be like signing up for the military in war time and then trying to sue the military because you get shot. They know what they are in for when they sign up for this league. I really don't think there's anything that can be done to stop these things from happening as long as the game continues to be played at the incredible pace and with the physicality that it is today.

 

Exactly ,,watch that game ,,makes our NFL players look awfully bad

 

Wow. Can some of those guys be hired as coaches? Almost all shoulder tackling and wrapping up - or at least they tried to. No helmet-to-helmet issues .

 

Imagine what the UFC fighters will look like in 20 years,,,they'll all be drooling at the table

 

There's no parallel to the NFL game as you can't tackle/engage anyone but the ball-carrier in the Rugby game.

There are concussions in the rugby game as well. Hits to the head aren't the only thing that causes them.

Getting rid of the helmet isn't going to work unless you change the rules for the linemen as they are the ones that suffer more from the repeated hits to the head based on how they line up and engage. We see the flashy hits, but the repeated small hits are proving to be worse.

UFC fighters are about in the same ballpark as boxers. Boxers are in the business of pummeling your opponent to bring about enough damage to win. Most of those blows are to the head causing micro-concussions. We celebrate the K.O. in MMA and Boxing, but what are we really celebrating? Yup! You got it! A concussion! You just got hit so hard that your brain blacked out!

 

There are Rugby helmets... but they are soft, not sure how effective they are? That one European soccer goalie wears one.

NFL Helmets and Pads are like weapons, I don't think Mike Mitchell or Troy P. are flying in head first without them....

 

I got bored and found this

 

The rugby helmets are only really worn by the big guys that are at the points in the scrums. That's really the only time heads are banging together and there's a danger of cuts. They do have padded sweaters/jerseys to absorb impacts, but they aren't mandatory.

Different equipment due to the free flowing game and not the start and stop we have in Football.

 

Nicely stated.

 

Go back to leather pads and leather helmets. The equipment they put on the field today is more for show and less for safety especially when it comes to the plastic shells they put on their heads.

 

Yep. Not to mention the huge number of back injuries from collapsed scrums, and the generally lower pace over the course of the game because of the continuity of play.

I've known a fair few rugby guys who took up American football, usually as linemen, and they all said that the physical demands were very different.

 

Well I gotta give the Steelers credit. They are at the forefront of this campaign of trying to eliminate concussions in the sport. Led by who seems to be the patriarch of this plan is Antwon Blake who with some of his teammates have decided not tackling at all is the best remedy.