Riddell

Mr. Rodgers Not Exactly Correct

Dustin Fink3 Comments

If you follow me on twitter you know that I made a comment about the recent statement from Aaron Rodgers – concussed Super Bowl MVP – about helmets;

In his remarks he said the helmet he now wears, compared to the one he wore when he started in the league in 2005, has prevented him from “a couple” of concussions, including one against the New York Giants in a playoff game last season.

Rodgers was part of a panel of other quarterbacks that were also Super Bowl MVP’s hosted/moderated by Bob Costas – apparently a charity event.  Regardless if there was an actual quote from Rodgers about prevention of concussions from helmets or it was simply inferred by the context, it is not correct and could provide false hope to others.

Helmets were designed to attempt to eradicate skull fractures and brain bleeds, the most heinous of brain injuries that were felling many players at the turn of the 20th century.  As technology has progressed we have seen fewer and fewer of this often life-threatening injury; unfortunately it does still occur.  The helmet shell along with the interior padding is designed to absorb the massive linear forces that cold fracture a skull or provide enough trauma to rupture vessels in the head.

Concussions are a slight bit different – even though both are brain injuries – a concussion is mainly a neurometabolic and microscopic structural issue.  Concussions are set off in a variety of ways but the biggest culprit is angular acceleration/deceleration and rotation of the skull (most commonly those type of collisions in ALL Continue reading →

Bill Simpson Enters Football Helmet Race

Dustin Fink10 Comments

As we learn more about the concussion issue there are people trying their hardest to provide as much protection as possible for those that play the game.  From new assessment techniques to proper rehabilitation of the injury there is a myriad of different ways we can help out.  The most important is erasing the stigma and educating all those involved in sports, particularly football.

Right now (and for the discernible future) there is no equipment, including helmets, that can protect/attenuate/prevent concussions, it is just a physics impossibility.  However technology has come a long way in reducing the force transmitted to the head via helmets, with Riddell, Schutt and Xenith being the main focus and Rawlings a recent entry.  There have been a lot of people looking at auto racing helmets for their ability to disperse forces, but there is a problem with them. Continue reading →

Another New Helmet

Dustin Fink5 Comments

Last week we focused on the Austin Collie prototype helmet that we discovered via still images.  I am working very hard on cracking the case with firm information, a lot of hearsay abound. In the meantime I have also discovered that there is ANOTHER new helmet on the field this year, I have found it on the head of Steven Jackson of the St. Louis Rams.

While tying to get the information for the Collie helmet, I tripped upon Rawlings website where they are promoting an adult version of their youth helmet they have previously manufactured; the NRG Quantum, surfing through the site I saw Jackson wearing the helmet I was unaware existed.  Next, I looked at pictures from camp and did in fact Continue reading →

Austin Collie 4.0? UPDATE

Dustin Fink11 Comments

UPDATE BELOW

The Indianapolis Colts wide receiver has been through a lot the past year while dealing with concussions.  In fact last season I went on record to clear up the actual number of concussions he sustained last year.  Collie had three concussions last season and now in an effort to minimize his risks this year he sought out Bill Simpson;

And he reportedly has been working with auto racing safety expert Bill Simpson to design a new football helmet. Collie could not confirm those reports Thursday.

“That is for him to comment on,” he said. “No comment.”

The helmet Collie has been wearing at Anderson University appears to have more padding in the back, and its shape seems slightly different than a regulation helmet.

Last weekend when Will Carroll and I met up in Effingham, Illinois we were wondering about just this, however we had not heard anything, Continue reading →

TCB’s Research Backs Up Va Tech Information

Dustin Fink5 Comments

Virginia Tech just released information about a “low rated” helmet on the field in the NFL, the Riddell VSR4;

Riddell’s VSR-4 helmet received just one star in a study of football helmets led by Virginia Tech professor of biomedical engineering Stefan Duma and released Tuesday. Another Riddell model — the Revolution Speed — was the only helmet that earned five stars, the top rating.

Five models — two made by Riddell, two by Schutt and one by Xenith — received four stars.

According to Riddell’s stats 40% of the players wore this helmet in 2010.  In our exclusive research we found on a random sample that 32.41% of players were wearing the helmet.  And that 71% of all helmets on the field were Riddell’s (75% reported by NFL and 77% reported by Riddell).

Our stats found that of all the counted concussions last year (with a helmet ID) 64% of all concussions were in Riddell helmets, 34% in Schutt and 2% in Xenith.  We further broke down the concussion based on actual models of the helmets and found a staggering number, Continue reading →

Riddell’s Newest Helmet

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It is called the “360” and it has seen the field.  In the National Championship Game, Oregon Duck running back LaMicheal James donned this for its debut.  Brittany Sauser of Technology Review, published by MIT, wrote about the helmet today.

Riddell, the official equipment manufacturer of the NFL, has released a new type of helmet designed to help reduce concussions. The Riddell 360 reduces the force of impact to the front of a player’s head, where 70 percent of hits occur, says Thad Ide, Riddell’s senior vice president of research and development. Ide adds that 70 percent of concussions result from hits to the front of the helmet.

Riddell has gathered statistics on head injuries using its own HIT technology, a system that employs sensor-equipped helmets to measure the location, magnitude, and direction of hits experienced during a game or practice.

A lot has been made of the helmets being worn on the field, and they were tracked here on this blog.  As the number one producer of helmets for the sport of football, Riddell is doing its best to bring to market the best possible solution.  As we all know and the article states no helmet will prevent concussions from occurring; Continue reading →

Most Recent Helmets

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Here are some pictures of recent helmet designs.  I would like to say that the performance of the helmets have improved over the past 11 years, and even 4 years.  With the introduction of new helmet makers technology can only get better.  The main difference in technology over the recent years is the removal of foam as the “absorption” material and using more “air” or “dead-space” in the helmet.

Riddell Revo Speed (2010)

Schutt Ion-4D (2009)

Schutt DNA Pro+

Xenith X-1 (2009)