Football is a dangerous sport. Many players suffer from concussions and head trauma. For many years, that was just part of the game, but now scientists and doctors alike are seeing the real effects of what football does to the brain, and it is not pretty.
All football players should be required to wear the guardian cap. The guardian cap is a lightweight, soft padded cover that players can put over their helmets. Players wearing the guardian cap are able to absorb hits to their head much better due to the protective padding stopping things like concussions from occurring.
The main reason that guardian caps should be required is the rise of football players struggling with mental health after their careers due to traumatic head injuries occurring. A study conducted by the British Medical Journal found that of 878 players examined who had played at least one NFL snap, around 25% of them had CTE. CTE is a progressive brain disease caused by repeated blows to the head that slowly kill off healthy brain cells.
CTE is a scary disease as it can only be diagnosed after death. There is also no cure for CTE given that there is no way to reverse damage to the brain.
If the NFL and NCAA were looking out for players’ health, they would require the use of guardian caps for every player. Not only to prevent future things like CTE but also to help prevent the ugly hits we see on the football field where players are left unconscious and in a fencing response which no one likes to see. Having this will keep football around longer and ensure football remains a viable sport as more parents are not allowing their kids to play football due to the head and body injuries it can cause later on in life.
There is no good reason for someone not wearing the guardian cap besides the stigma around that it looks dumb and makes the players look soft. These are miniscule complaints in the grand scheme of things, and we should prioritize people’s lives after they have retired from the game.
The NFL has already instituted policies for certain players of a certain position to wear the guardian cap during their training camps to reduce head injuries while practicing. This change brought the concussions and other head injuries to all-time lows in training camps around the league.
I’m unsure of why football leagues around the world don’t take a stance to come together to protect players from future problems. Football is the number one sport in America when it comes to money and engagement and allowing players to have healthier lives after will make the game continue to grow and see fewer parents not allowing their kids to play.
Many players have already made the change, including Saints wide receiver Chris Olave who has suffered multiple concussions throughout his career. When asked last week about why he wears the guardian cap and said, “I got kids now I want to be able to live the long game I want to live a regular life after football.” For the longevity of the game, it will be important for the NFL and NCAA to adjust the way we protect the players’ brains. Otherwise, football will see a steep decline in youth participation due to parents’ worries about the long-term effects of the game.