The NFL says the preseason had the fewest concussions since tracking began

The NFL recorded its lowest number of preseason concussions since tracking began in 2015.

There were 44 concussions in practices and games, down about 24 percent from last year.

“The reason for this change certainly has to do with rule changes, equipment changes including the Guardian Cap, as well as a number of other efforts we’ve made over the years to keep the numbers down,” said Jeff Miller, the NFL’s executive vice president overseeing player health and safety.

The league’s revamped home rule resulted in fewer injuries overall, but there were a few concussions in the game.

“We saw more concussions on dynamic hitting than we thought we’d see,” Miller said. “I haven’t seen any concussions in the first three weeks of dynamic hitting in the regular season.”

Nearly 99 percent of players wore top-performance helmets, including more than 250 players who wear helmets that the league says offer as much — and in some cases more — protection than a helmet paired with a Guardian cap.

There was almost a 50% reduction in pre-season concussions among players wearing the Guardian cap in mandatory sessions compared to the pre-mandate average.

Injuries were front and center again when Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered his fourth diagnosed concussion in five years in Week 2.

“I know he’s seeing top experts,” NFL medical director Dr. Allen Sills said.

Sills said the league has no role in Tagovailoa’s future plans. If the doctors give him permission to play, it is Tagovailoa’s decision.

“Patient autonomy and medical decision-making really matter,” Sills said. “And I think that’s what we have to recognize that continues with our concussion protocol as well. Ultimately, when patients make decisions about their career considerations, they must reflect that autonomy that is generated from discussions with medical experts who provide them with the best medical advice.”

Sills, a neurosurgeon who led the NFL’s efforts to strengthen its concussion guidelines, said there is no “detailed formula” that predicts future risk for players.

“It’s not like we can put in the number of concussions and how much time between them and your age and some unusual constant or Avogadro’s number that always seemed to be in freshman chemistry somehow and create a risk,” he said Sills. “It just doesn’t work that way. So what we need to do is look at the totality of the patient’s experience, how many concussions, the interval between those concussions, some about the duration of symptoms after each concussion, and then very much the patient’s voice about where they are in their journey, their career, their age them and things like that.

“And from that, we try as medical professionals to make our best guess. But that’s really, it’s a guess what someone’s future risk of concussion is.”

Lower extremity strains were down 27% in 2024 compared to the 2021 preseason, a year before the acclimatization period was introduced.

“While there is no finish line in our efforts to make the game safer, this preseason’s injury data is an example of how the league’s deliberate approach to player safety continues to pay off,” Sills said. “We are committed to building a culture of safety around the game and this pre-season has been another positive step in that direction.”

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