In a season dominated by the NFL’s efforts to play a full schedule during a pandemic, many other health issues have been overshadowed, particularly concussions, an issue that has dogged the league in years past.
The topic returned to the forefront over the weekend when two of the league’s best players — the winners of the last two Most Valuable Player Awards, no less — were knocked out of their divisional round playoff games with symptoms consistent with concussions. The NFL received kudos for following its own player safety rules, which were developed after years of criticism that not enough was being done to prevent head hits.
Yet as is so often the case, hits to the head that were not penalized garnered just as much as attention. They suggest the league is far from eliminating the helmet-to-helmet hits that have led to so many head injuries.