22 November 2016

Mr. Roger Goodell

Commissioner of the National Football League
280 Park Avenue, 15th floor
New York, NY 10017, United States
Dear Mr. Goodell,
I am pleased to inform you that I have completed my study on the feasibility of the NFL taking
away the use of helmets. I would like to thank you for giving me permission to research this
topic. While I know this is a very controversial topic within the office, I believe my findings will
help with future endeavors.
I started my research by looking into documentaries of doctors who examine former NFL
players brains. This led me to medical journals that described the impact of multiple head
collisions. I then developed a questionnaire that was given to fellow students in my class. The
results from my primary research reflect how the fans would react to taking away helmets.
I then went on to research how other countries play contact sports. I found that rugby and
Australian football is the closet relative to American football. The way the game is played is with
less protective padding and as a result less intensive injuries. This will be explained more in the
following pages.
I found the research intriguing and informative. I am confident the information provided was
reviewed to be able to arrive at a conclusion. Thank you again for this opportunity I greatly
appreciate the time I had to research and prepare this report. I hope you find it equally as
interesting
Sincerely,
Sammie Jo McGuire

Running head: ELIMINATING HELMETS IN THE NFL

Eliminating Helmets In The NFL: A Feasibility Study

Sammie Jo McGuire
Hamline University
November 22, 20

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2
Abstract

This paper examines the feasibility of the NFL taking away players helmets. The research
includes a survey completed by local students, analysis of documentaries, and a review of
medical journals. The research shows the damaging effects of impacts taken by the head. Though
while reviewing the primary research, the impact of taking away helmets was not as expected. It
has been determined that it is not feasible to take away helmets, as too many fans have grown
accustomed to the look of the players now. It is clear that one big change to the game would be
too much for the fans. The recommendations that are included is to expand research on how
Australian football is played and creating new rules to prevent repetitive impact on the head.

ELIMINATING HELMETS IN THE NFL

Table of Contents
Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 4
Methods ................................................................................................................................................... 5
Results ..................................................................................................................................................... 6
Figure 1. ......................................................................................................................................................... 7
Figure 2 .......................................................................................................................................................... 8
Figure 3 .......................................................................................................................................................... 9

Conclusion .............................................................................................................................................. 9
Recommendations ............................................................................................................................... 9
References ............................................................................................................................................ 10

ELIMINATING HELMETS IN THE NFL

Introduction
Concussions come from receiving just mild blows to the head. Most people do not realize
the helmet is not able to protect the brain; it only protects the outer skull. Because the brain is
freely floating within the cerebrospinal fluid, when the skull does collide with an opposing force
it causes the brain to stretch and bounce off the skull (Daneshvar, et. al, 2011, p. 145). This
results in symptoms including headache, confusion, lack of coordination, memory loss, nausea,
vomiting, dizziness, ringing in the ears, sleepiness, and excessive fatigue. While it should be
noted these symptoms may not be present when the incident occurs (p. 146).
Daneshvar & et al note Post concussion syndrome (PCS) may occur, especially in
situations in which an athlete is not properly treated after a concussion. PCS presents with
physical, cognitive, emotional, and behavioral symptoms that can take months or even years to
resolve (p. 146). There are ways to prevent concussions from happening within the sport.
Between 1893 and 1940 leather helmets were not a requirement for athletes in the NFL (p. 147).
In the year 2015, a total of 87 out of 91 former NFL players have tested positive for the
brain disease at the center of the debate over concussions in football (Breslow, 2015, para. 1).
Football, especially lineman, players take minor hits on each play. The repetitive blows and
event serious blows can lead a player to having chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) (para.
2). Instead of standing by and watching the number rise, I propose research the feasibility of
taking away helmets.
The Australian Football League (AFL) is played similarly to rugby. There is no
equipment, shoulder pads, or helmets used. In a regular season there is 16 teams with 40 players
each. Orchard and Seward studied the injuries that would occur within the 4 seasons of play.
They discovered, Approximately 16 injuries per year were reported to the survey. It would also

ELIMINATING HELMETS IN THE NFL

mean that each club could expect to have one player (out of 40) per season to have an injury of
this type that would result in his missing a regular season match (Orchard & Seward, 2001, p.
40). The AFL is continuing to prove that there is a safe way to play a contact sport.
After review and evaluation of the above-mentioned questionnaire and research,
recommendations were made based on the following criteria:

Do other countries play football without helmets?

Is the concussion rate lower in countries that play football without helmets?

Is there a benefit to wearing a helmet during play?

Will fans still watch the game if the players are not wearing helmets?
Methods
I received the permission to conduct research regarding my feasibility proposal. I started

my research with the TV show that sparked my interest into this topic which is Adam Ruins
Everything. The host and investigative comedian Adam Conover embarks on a comically
inventive yet unrelentingly serious quest to reveal the hidden truths behind everything you know
and love. Conover talked in an episode on how players do not always report on the head injuries
they incur. By studying former NFL players brains they were able to discover CTE in 96% of the
cases (Breslow).
While my interest was sparked I went to Google Scholar and started research about the
performance of helmets. I took key words such as concussion rates in NFL and CTE found in
athletes. This brought up many journal articles from Neurosurgery that deemed helpful in the
research I needed.
While digging into the topic of protective gear I came across an article that J. Orchard
wrote on injuries in the Australian Football League. This had led me to looking deeper into the

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British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJM). The articles that surfaced were from the past five
years. Concussions are growing to be a bigger problem that it is useful for my research to have
recent data.
Since I do not have access to BJM and their articles full text I went on to look elsewhere
for these journals. If the introduction and abstract looked as if I could benefit from this article I
would search on Hamlines databases to see if they had it available. If there were times when I
could not find them there I would then go to Google Scholar. I had no trouble finding the articles
on there.
Results
On October 24, 2014, I surveyed 31 Hamline students to determine if it was feasible for
the NFL to take away helmets. The biggest factor is taking away gear is if spectators will still
watch the game. While play has not changed much since 1920 the gear they wear has. In Figure
1 it illustrates the opinions of if the students will still watch an NFL game if helmets were to be
taken away. With the split as close as it is I expected to see a closer relation in answers to my
feasibility question, should the NFL take away the use of helmets. It is interesting to take into
account that over half of the participants play a sport, and no participants play football. A
concern the NFL has is the loss of fans. This report is a positive enough to show the change
could be a good things.

ELIMINATING HELMETS IN THE NFL

Figure 1 Majority opinion stating they will still watch an NFL game.
Figure 2 shows what the participants of the survey related football with. Two of the three
answers involving violence were chosen by over 50% of the participants. Concussions was able
to beat out injuries by two people. There is no denying how dangerous of a sport football is. With
over 300lb lineman going after each other will cause a few injuries. There has been multiple
developments made to helmets for players. If the problem of concussions keeps occurring it
should not be dealt with creating new gear. Neuroscientists have studied the effects of repetitive
head collisions on former players. If players did not have a helmet for protection they would not
use their head as a defense mechanism.

ELIMINATING HELMETS IN THE NFL

Figure 2 Represents when asked what relates to the sport of football.

In Figure 3 I asked participants of the survey to see their opinion on if the NFL should take away
helmets. With it very apparent the participants did not like the idea of the NFL taking away
helmets reconsiders my study. With two people in agreeance with the idea does not constitute the
support that is needed. This topic is something that needs to be further developed. As it looks for
the time being it does not seem feasible for the NFL to take away helmets due to the lack of
support from fellow fans.

ELIMINATING HELMETS IN THE NFL

Figure 3 Opinion of if the NFL should take away helmets.

Conclusion
Concussions are detrimental to the brain. Research shows that how much of an impact it
leaves on players in the NFL. Doctors all over know that nothing can stop the impact the brain
has when it hits the skull. The only protection that is given is fluid in the skull. While it is not
safe to have such impacts the sport is still going to be played. Helmets have advanced to reduce
the acceleration of the head on impact, thereby decreasing the brain-skull collision. But this is
just a band aide on an severed limb.
The fan base the NFL has become very influential. While there is a problem with how the
game is played it does not effect the fans. It is tough when the news comes on and reports about
a former player that committed suicide 10 years after playing. At the end of the day the game
still gets played. New players come in and the old retire from injuries. It would take an immense
army to change the rules on how the game is played or how players can suit up for the game.
Until then todays science can only create options to prevent the issues but not stop them from
happening completely. Head on collisions will continue to happen until there is one play that will
change the rules.
Recommendations
Former players and refs should form a committee focused on the rules of the game. They
are the ones who know what is happening on the field. With this being such a big issue it needs
to come from within. Hopefully this committee will be able to look at the fundamentals of the
game and rule out what is damaging to the players. Instead of having dress code monitors on the
sidelines of each game change them to monitor the play that is happening. If they can call out
who is leading with their head when going in for a tackle then the player would get fined for

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10

making that play. Since taking away helmets is not a feasible option, there needs to be protection
for the players. Australia can play football with less padding than the NFL does. Other
countries are showing America how it can be played. That needs to be slowly implemented in
NFL regulations.
References
Conover, A. (Writer). (2016, August 28). Adam Ruins Football [Television series episode]. In
Adam Ruins Everything. New York, New York: Turner Entertainment.
Baugh, C. M., Kiernan, P. T., Kroshus, E., Daneshvar, D. H., Montenigro, P. H., Mckee, A.C.,
& Stern, R. A. (2015). Frequency of head-impactrelated outcomes by position in NCAA
Division I collegiate football players. Journal of Neurotrauma, 32(5), 314-326.
Breslow, J. M. (2015, September 18). New: 87 Deceased NFL players test positive for brain
disease. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/new-87-deceased-nflplayers-test-positive-for-brain-disease/
Daneshvar, D. H., Baugh, C. M., Nowinski, C. J., Mckee, A. C., Stern, R. A., & Cantu,

R. C.

(2011, January). Helmets and mouth guards: The role of personal equipment in
preventing sport-related concussions. Clinics in Sports Medicine, 30(1), 145-163.
Omalu, B. I., Dekosky, S. T., Minster, R. L., Kamboh, M. I., Hamilton, R. L., & Wecht, C. H.
(2005, February 10). Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy in a National Football League
Player. Neurosurgery, 57(1), 128-134. DOI: 10.1227/01.NEU.0000163407.92769.ED
Orchard, J., & Seward, H. (2002). Epidemiology of injuries in the Australian Football
League, seasons 1997-2000. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 36(1), 39-44.