You might have noticed your favorite NFL player looking slightly different at training camp over the last several seasons.
Guardian Caps — helmet coverings intended to add extra protection against head injuries –have become the norm for NFL players during summer practice sessions.
What does the future of Guardian Caps look like? Are NFL players required to wear them in training camps? Are any players wearing a Guardian Cap in a regular-season game?
Let’s dig into all those questions while exploring the NFL’s newest safety tool.
NFL Guardian Cap FAQ: Explaining Football’s New Helmet
What Are Guardian Caps?
Guardian Caps are soft-shell helmet covers designed to reduce concussions. Invented in 2010, they are engineered to lessen the impact of head-to-head collisions.
Are Guardian Caps Mandatory?
Yes and no.
The NFL introduced Guardian Caps during 2022 training camps. In 2023, the league required positions that receive the most head contact — running backs, linemen, and linebackers — to wear the extra padding in camp.
In 2024, every position, excluding quarterbacks and specialists, was mandated to use a Guardian Cap in training camp. NFL players who wore one of six new helmet models approved by the league and the NFLPA were exempt from using Guardian Caps.
The NFL also approved Guardian Caps for in-game use in 2024. It’s a significant reversal for the league, which prohibited the use of Guardian Caps during games in 2023.
To reduce player risk and continue driving innovations in equipment technology, Guardian Caps have been authorized for in-game use this season.
Hear more from @NFL Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Allen Sills: https://t.co/PpqOBxEiHl pic.twitter.com/tXUlAaEDbR
— NFL Football Operations (@NFLFootballOps) April 26, 2024
“We now have two years of data showing significant concussion reductions among players who wear Guardian Caps during practice, so players will be permitted to wear the cap during games this upcoming season,” NFL executive vice president Jeff Miller said in a statement.
“Additionally, there are new helmets this year that provide as much — if not more — protection than a different helmet model paired with a Guardian Cap. These developments represent substantial progress in our efforts to make the game safer for players.”
Will NFL Players Wear Guardian Caps in Games?
Tennessee Titans tight end Josh Whyle and Indianapolis Colts tight end Kylen Granson will be the first players to wear a Guardian Cap in a regular-season NFL game.
Whyle has suffered multiple concussions, which contributed to his decision to wear the cap.
“I can’t mess around anymore,” Whyle told ESPN. “I want to stay healthy and if this is what it takes, then I’m all for it.”
Granson explained that the decision was a “no-brainer.”
“At one point, people thought seatbelts were f—ing stupid,” Granson told The Athletic. “Why wouldn’t I (wear it)? Just because it looks silly? I feel like health and safety is more important than aesthetics. … I don’t want anyone to dig me up after I’m gone and check my brain.”
In an Instagram post, Granson elaborated on his decision to wear the Guardian Cap, saying that he wants to be able to remember the first dance from his wedding “30 years from now.”
“There’s no amount of aesthetic that could outweigh what a TBI (traumatic brain injury) could do to you,” Granson posted on Instagram. “And one of the more unknown things is that not only is it the big hits that you have to worry about, it’s the culmination of a bunch of little hits.
“I want to inspire kids to think that health and safety is also cool. You can do cool things out on the football field and still wear a Guardian Cap. I want my (future) children to wear helmets when they ride a bike. … Because there’s no amount of cool that would be worth walking into a hospital room and your child’s in a vegetative state because they weren’t wearing a helmet. Because they didn’t want to look dumb.”
Granson was one of six players who wore a Guardian Cap during the preseason, joining Pittsburgh Steelers OL James Daniels, Colts S Rodney Thomas II, Colts LB Grant Stuard, Colts RB Zavier Scott, and Colts RB Jonathan Taylor.
#Steelers RG James Daniels is wearing a guardian cap for today’s game.
It has a helmet stripe and a logo. pic.twitter.com/AXqAPVgiVU
— Alan Saunders (@ASaunders_PGH) August 9, 2024
In 2022, Daniels kept wearing his Guardian Cap even after the portion of camp when they were mandated.
“I think they help,” Daniels said this week. “The NFLPA is doing a lot — just how training camp is set up, all the new rules, lowering the head, all that stuff with the new kickoff. I feel like they’re trying to make the game safer, so if they’re giving us an opportunity to make the game safer, I feel like it’d be kind of like spitting in their face not to use it.”
However, Granson, Whyle, and Co. seem to be in the minority among NFL players. Pro Football Network’s Adam Beasley recently asked six Miami Dolphins players whether they’d wear a Guardian Cap in a game — and none were open to the idea.
“No way,” said Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks. “It’s like an extra 10 pounds on your head, makes it a lot hotter, heavier. No, I wouldn’t do it.”
Brooks then quipped: “They call them UFO caps.”
Count Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Darius Slay among the anti-Guardian Cap crowd too.
“Oh, I can’t stand them. It impacts my swag,” Slay told Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports this week. “My game is part of my swag. If I ain’t looking the part, I can’t feel the part. They have me looking very ugly out there with that big ol’ cap on the head.”
Do Guardian Caps Work?
Earlier this year, Miller indicated players who wore Guardian Caps during training camp experienced a 50% reduction in concussions over those who did not.
Per the NFL, wearing a Guardian Cap can reduce the severity of head impacts by at least 10%. If two players wearing Guardian Caps combine for a helmet-to-helmet collision, the impact force is reduced by at least 20%.