Concussions are, once again, a leading topic in the NFL this season.
On Sept. 12, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa‘s head took a hard hit into Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin‘s chest that left Tagovailoa stuck on the field for a few moments.
Tua takes a hard hit. He appears to be concussed. #BUFvsMIA pic.twitter.com/SwBpjQQaM1
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) September 13, 2024
The hit made headlines because Tagovailoa, 26, suffered an in-game hit in September 2022 that left him with his hands stuck in the air in front of his face. His reaction to the collision with Hamlin was eerily similar.
The discussion of concussions and CTE, a brain disease caused by multiple hits to the brain that can’t officially be diagnosed until after a person dies, among football players has been prevalent for over a decade now. In 2015, Will Smith starred as a doctor who shined a light on CTE in the popular film Concussion. Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was in prison after being found guilty of murder and allegedly ended his own life while jailed. It was discovered that he suffered from CTE, and it may have impacted his violent behavior while alive.
Recently, former Baltimore Ravens linebacker Tim Johnson spoke to rolling out about Tagovailoa’s latest injury and his solution for a safer game.
What were your thoughts on Tua’s injury?
When he suffered the hit, I literally went on Facebook, and posted, “Sit down with your family, go ahead and retire. You got paid [$235.2M]. Whatever of that they can guarantee, you keep it, but take your money. Go ahead and go home because you got paid.
You hate to see that injury happen. You hate to see it happen on prime time. You hate to see it continuously happen to the same guy. It’s unfortunate. Tua took jiu-jitsu and learned how to fall by taking classes, but he’s still diving forward head first. You have to slide in that situation. He didn’t do enough practice sliding. You have to slide in that situation. Every time, post-concussion, post-injury, you have to slide … Also, Damar Hamlin avoided that direct blunt-force trauma to the chest again. He just missed it off to the right of his shoulder; that’s where Tua’s neck turned, but we have to make the game safer.
That’s been my mission since 2017 when we started Hip MD and hip, head impact prevention. At Hip MD, we’re looking to see how we can start to make this helmet and chip away at trying to prevent one of the most serious injuries you can have in life.
Share more about this helmet technology you’re proposing.
I like to reference a rubber ducky. A rubber ducky can be formed, then [deformed], then formed again. We also have the biomimicking technology of the ram’s horn, the woodpecker beak, the lobster tail unit, which Tua could use. Quarterbacks need the lobster tail on their back, so when they fall, the first thing they hit is not the back of their heads.
What is the lobster tail?
It’s an attachment at the bottom of the base of the helmet. It extends, and when you fall … it breaks the fall with its connection to the helmet.
The lobster tail is bio-mimicking technology we’re using, as well. We have armadillo skin on there to make it tough, but it’s still expandable and protective.
Why do you care so much to keep the game of football alive?
Coming from Fairfield, AL, it was rough. To make it out of there and into the league was a dream. I made it to the stage with some of the greatest players of all time.
It took me to Africa and Europe. It’s my safe haven.
