Why Football Players Need Helmets: Importance and Risks

During the sport of football there are many collisions among the players and all the players have knowledge of the dangers to the contact sport but some do not know the extent to how severe of an injury they can obtain. Football players wear helmets, shoulder pads, thigh pads, and kneepads for one reason and one reason only and that is for their protection. Even with all the padding and protection there is still a risk of getting hurt and severely injured.

A common head injury that happens in football is concussions even with the use of helmets. In 2012, 3.800.000 total concussions were reported in sports; 47% of which occurred during high school football (What is a Concussion?). Not all concussions result in players being paralyzed but if a player is hit a certain way then further damage can be caused to the head or neck. The manufacturer or the negligence of the coaches can link some injuries back to the failure to properly warn a player on helmet risks.

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Helmet manufacturers and coaches both need to be very informative and careful when it comes to the safety of the players and possible life injuries due to tackling collisions.

Cases Involving Major Helmet Manufacturer Over the past couple decades Riddell has been put into the spotlight but not in the way that companies would want to be put into the spotlight. The lawsuits brought against Riddell mainly a result of major injuries that have changed the players living situation and ability in day to-day activities.

Riddell is not the only helmet manufacturer company but they have seen more lawsuits than Schutt regarding failing to adequately warning players and for negligence in the risk management.

Galindo v. Riddell, Inc. (1982) William Galindo suffered a fracture dislocation on his cervical vertebrae at the level of the fifth and sixth vertebrae during a high school football game on October 11, 1974. As a result of the injury the plaintiff was paralyzed form the neck down and considered to be a quadriplegic (Galindo v. Riddell, Inc.). The lawsuit filed against Riddell by Galindo consisted of five counts: "a strict product liability count, a negligence count, a willful and wanton negligence count, a breach of warranty count, and a strict product liability count seeking punitive damages” (Galindo v. Riddell, Inc.). Galindo later dismissed the two counts of negligence against the defendant. The plaintiff claimed that the back of the helmet was cut low across the back of his neck and as a result came in contact with the location of the fracture on his vertebrae. Evidence from both the plaintiff and the defendant were presented for causation of the injury as a result of the plaintiff wearing the TK2 helmet. Many tests of evidence were deemed irrelevant to the case of seen as a demonstration that could not be directly linked to the plaintiff's injury. Because of experiments the decision was reversed in Riddell’s favor. This case shows that experiments and evidence is key in court decisions and the relevancy of the evidence to the injury.

Carrier v. Riddell, Inc. (1983) Mitchell Carrier was injured with a severe spinal injury during a high school football game. His mother sued several football helmet manufacturers one of which was Riddell. The lawsuit was brought on negligence and the failure to warn the team that football helmets do not offer much protection to a player's neck and spine” (Walker, M.).

The Massachusetts District Court ruled in favor of Riddell, Inc. seeing as the plaintiff was not actually wearing a Riddell helmet. During the time there were other cases against Riddell for the same causations of injury with other players actually wearing Riddell helmets but for this case the mother felt that Riddell should be included in the group of manufacturers because of their negligence in other cases.

Ridolfi v. Riddell, Inc. (2013) Rhett Ridolfi suffered a concussion in August 2008 at a high school football practice. The coaches cleared him to continue practicing even when he was dizzy, vomiting, and suffering severe headaches. While he got injured at about 7:50 AM he was not taken to the hospital until around 3:30 PM. He was only taken to the hospital because he began stumbling and slurring his speech. The physicians "determined Ridolfi had suffered an arterial hemorrhage with heavy bleeding. He now has irreversible brain damage that has harmed his future earning capacity” (Ryan, G.). Ridolfi filed a suit against Riddell as the helmet manufacturers for failure to adequately warn the plaintiff and the high school football coaches for negligence. As government employees the coaches did not have to pay the $11.5 million verdict. On the other hand Riddell, Inc. was hit with a $3.1 million verdict for the failure to adequately warn the plaintiff and "the odds of sustaining a concussion using the helmet were greater than the company let on” (Ryan, G.).

Risk Management Warning labels. A warning label cannot prevent head injuries from occurring during the contact sport of football but they can keep the consumers informed in that helmets help protect the players the best they can. For decades Schutt has placed warning label stickers on the backside of football helmets warning both players and coaches of the risks and head injuries that come along with playing football. The case of Ridolfi v. Riddell is directly related to the lack of warning from Riddell and also the negligence of the coaches. Robert Erb, Schutt's chief executive makes an important comment about football helmet warning labels; "This is not to provoke fear or controversy, it was to tell you to look both ways when you cross the street, not don't cross the street" (Belson, K.). When Schutt began putting warning labels on their helmets it scared people off on all levels. Players from the youth programs all the way up to the NFL level are being injured from the contact sport and when they get injured they want to blame someone else and when warning labels are not present it is easy to blame the helmet manufacturers. Yearly Inspection. Schutt and Riddell both have policies that when their helmets are purchased they will do a yearly inspection and reconditioning of the helmets to ensure they remain safe for the players. The helmets are sent in as they are when taken off the players' heads after the last practice with hardware and all. Next, all of the hardware and decals are removed and sanded down to remove existing paint. The helmets are next cleaned and sanitized with hot, pressurized water. An important step to the reconditioning process is when the helmets are closely inspected individually for hairline cracks and other defects. All inside padding is then re installed and replaced if necessary. Finally the helmets are repainted and all hardware is replaced if necessary and placed back on the helmet. When the helmets come out of the reconditioning process they are basically brand new and safe for players to use during practice and games (Riddell Reconditioning Process). Helmets that are over 10 years old are not accepted for reconditioning because of the updates on helmets over the years.

Coaches Responsibilities. Along with football helmet manufacturers having lawsuits brought up against them, coaches are also being sued for football head injuries for negligence with the head injuries. For example the lawsuit above, Ridolfi v. Riddell, Inc., also involved Ridolfi's coaches for allowing him to continue practicing even after obtaining a concussion.

According to the Riddell article "Concussion Information for Coaches" there are four steps for a coaches management action plan when it comes to a player obtaining a concussion during a football collision. These four steps are: "remove the athlete from play, ensure that the athlete is evaluated right away by an appropriate health car professional, inform the athlete's parents or guardians about the possible concussion and give them the fact sheet on concussion, and allow the athlete to return to play only with the permission from a health care professional with experience in evaluating for concussion" (Concussion Information for Coaches). The coaches are responsible for the safety of their players and informing them that their safety comes first over playing. They need to ensure the players and parents understand the risks of the sport.

Concussions. Simply wearing a helmet does not ensure the prevention of getting a concussion, there are many elements and factors that go into wearing the helmet that can only help prevent a concussion. “No helmet is concussion proof” (What is a Concussion?). The most important is to make sure the helmet fits properly and is well maintained. For football this means that helmets are sent in for reconditioning. On football helmets there is a sticker on the backside that marks whether the helmet is certified by the NOCSAE to be safe for the players to wear to help prevent concussions.

Conclusion Over the past decades football has grown in population and along with the sport's growth injuries have grown in population as well. With a contact sport comes a risk of injuries. Many of these injuries related to football come to a player's head and concussions. People think it's because the helmets are not made properly, although that could possibly be the instance, the concussions come more from the way the player has been hit. The failure to properly warn a player of the risk of a concussion even with a helmet worn can come back to the manufacturer and the negligence of allowing a player to continue to play after a concussion hit can come back to the coach's negligence. Football helmets are made very carefully and require yearly inspections to ensure they are the safest they can be for players. For years to come manufacturers and coaches will learn to be more informative and even overly informative to prevent lawsuits coming back to them and to help the players be as safe as they can to help prevent more players from becoming paralyzed due to lack safety regulations. Lawsuits brought against Riddell, Inc. can be big learning curve when it comes to football helmet liability and the safety of players who get hit and obtain a concussion.