NFL's Newest Fashion Trend Makes Players Look Cartoonish But Adds To Safety
The NFL's newest fashion trend has been on display at training camps around the league and it admittedly takes some getting used to. But it's meant to increase the safety of the players.
Guardian Caps are a thing now.
The NFL says players from all 32 NFL teams are wearing the padded shell affixed to the outside of helmets. In all 2022 preseason practices up until the second preseason game, all offensive linemen, defensive linemen, tight ends, and linebackers are required to wear the Guardian Cap.
The Guardian Cap is meant to provide additional impact protection during the period when the league sees the greatest concentration of helmet impacts. The Guardian Cap, NFL studies show, results in at least a 10 percent reduction in severity of impact if one player is wearing it, and at least a 20 percent reduction in impact if two players are wearing them.
"The recommendation of the Guardian Cap was an easy move," Colts coach Frank Reich said. "The research just continues to show that the cumulative effect of hits over a long season, it matters.
"So, it was a very strategic move to take the time in training camp where there's more bodies, more repetitions, put the cap on, reduce the cumulative effect of hit over the course of a season."
Now here's the potential negative: It looks goofy.
It makes players look like the Great Gazoo from the Jetsons and Flintstones (If you don't know, I got nothing for you). It also hearkens back to former Buffalo Bills safety Mark Kelso.
The Guardian Cap has been described as a helmet for the helmet. So players who spend countless hours sculpting and even waxing their bodies (yeah, that's a thing), eating right to be in the finest condition, and love to dress well, may look kind of cartoonish with the Guardian Cap on.
But coaches and other players are tying to get guys more concerned with health and safety than looks.
"I will always act in your best interests, particularly as it pertains to your health and safety" Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin told his players in a meeting to introduce the Guardian Caps. "I love football. My sons play football. I'm morally obligated to keep this damn group safe and I promise you will get that commitment from me."
Here's the bottom line: This makes great sense so that players might be able to avoid head trauma and the cumulative effect of that at the reasonable expense of esthetics.
The use of Guardian Caps has one more outgrowth...
"You guys didn't hear the clack of the helmets today," Washington Commanders coach Ron Rivera said after one of his team's practices. "That's typically what happens when you don't have the Guardian Caps on, you know, inevitably incidental contact helmet will be hitting helmet.
"With these Guardian Caps what they'll do is absorb some of the shock and take some of the shock off the players helmets and hits."
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