Guardian Cap
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5c/Hassan_Hall_%2853141821467%29_%28cropped%29.jpg/200px-Hassan_Hall_%2853141821467%29_%28cropped%29.jpg)
The Guardian Cap is a line of soft-shell pads that attach to and cover the outside of a gridiron football or ice hockey helmet. They have been used in football practices since 2015, with the National Football League (NFL) first mandating their use for some position groups since 2022. After expanding this mandate to further position groups in the following years, the NFL officially allowed for their use in live games in 2024. The equipment has also been used in the Canadian Football League (CFL), as well as in collegiate and youth levels of American football.
Players have been documented as initially hesitant of the equipment, or critical of its aesthetics, but ultimately recognizing the equipment's role in player safety. While the NFL conducts its own research on the equipment, researchers independent of the league have also studied the efficacy of the caps. This independent research has not been documented to conclude the equipment being effective in mitigating the effect of head impact.
Description
The Guardian Caps are soft-shell padding that attach to the outer layer of a football helmet, covering it.[1][2] The Caps help to absorb contact on hits to the helmet. According to Calgary Stampeders equipment manager George Hopkins, the Caps are lightweight, weighing less than 1 pound (0.45 kg).[3] While much media coverage has centered on the Caps' usage in the NFL, the equipment also has documented use in other professional leagues,[4] as well as the collegiate and youth levels.[5][6] The caps are also used by ice hockey players.[5]
History
Ancillary helmet pads had been developed from at least the late 1980s. However, their use voided the warranties and certifications of helmet manufacturers. This position was supported by the US National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE) until 2013, when it recognized third-party certification for add-on equipment.[7]: 6 Guardian was formed in 2010[7]: 7 by the owners of a materials science company. They initially developed a soft-shelled football helmet intended to replace the hard-shelled helmets of the 1960s, but it did not gain acceptance.[8] With the change to NOCSAE rules, they decided that a soft-shell cover would be a more viable product while demonstrating the advantages of soft-shell helmet technology.[9] The Guardian Cap has been used in high school football programs from 2015.[7]
Guardian further developed the equipment partly through a grant awarded by the NFL in 2017.[2] Running back Peyton Logan stated he used the Guardian Caps in 2020 and 2021, during his college career.[3] The Los Angeles Rams became early adopters of the caps in 2021, after quarterback Matthew Stafford injured his hand after hitting it on an uncapped helmet while following through on a pass during training camp.[10][11]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/2022_Cleveland_Browns_Training_Camp_%2852339587387%29.jpg/250px-2022_Cleveland_Browns_Training_Camp_%2852339587387%29.jpg)
During the Annual League Meeting in March 2022, the NFL passed a mandate and began requiring
During the 2023 NFL offseason, the mandates on wearing Guardian Caps were expanded. Running backs and fullbacks were added to the position groups required to wear them, while their use was made required for "every preseason practice, as well as every regular-season and postseason practice with contact".[14] Ahead of the 2023 season, the CFL also mandated the use of Guardian Caps during training camp and padded practices for offensive and defensive linemen, running backs, and linebackers.[3][4] In August 2023, NFL executive Jeff Miller stated on Good Morning Football that the caps could one day be worn in-game.[15] That month, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy clarified that a player would be told no if they were to ask to wear a Guardian Cap during a live game.[16] College football programs were noted to use Guardian Caps in 2023, with Auburn players wearing them during practices that fall.[6]
The NFL began requiring
Reception
Players were noted to be initially hesitant about the Caps.[21] During the 2022 NFL offseason, Arizona Cardinals linebacker J. J. Watt joked that "You feel like a bobblehead [wearing a Guardian Cap]. Like you're gonna fall over", though conceded that he understood why they were being used.[13] Other initial reaction was sometimes negative, with Miller stating that some feedback concentrated around the Caps' fit, as they sometimes "slipped a little bit".[15] Similar to with Watt, one CFL player commented on the "bobblehead" aesthetics of the Caps.[3] Stampeders defensive lineman Mike Rose stated "They look really goofy, but I mean, they're meant to help our brains and possibly help in CTE prevention".[3] Sportswriter Mike Florio stated that "While the league would likely never put it this way, aesthetics matter," opining that the "Guardian Cap objectively doesn't look good. It's big and it's bulky and it makes the helmet look like someone tried to soundproof it with egg cartons".[16]
Some player reaction has been noted as receptive, however. In 2024, the Rams' equipment manager Brendan Burger detailed that Guardian Caps became the norm for the team, commenting that "The players know the Caps. They've seen the data, it works. The Guardian Caps have become another piece of equipment that they take to practice".[11] Nate Davis of USA Today wrote that the adoption of the Caps for in-game use was "something of a seismic shift as it pertains to game day, but players have generally embraced the padded covers attached to the outside of the helmet".[11]
Research
The NFL has conducted research and disseminated data regarding Guardian Caps.
The efficacy of Guardian Caps has also been studied by researchers independent of the NFL.[21][23] A 2017 study published in the Journal of Athletic Training "could not conclude that the Guardian Cap provided measureable impact mitigation".[24] Another study published in the journal in 2023 suggested that the caps "may not be effective in reducing the magnitude of head impacts experienced by NCAA Division I American football players".[25] Another 2023 study, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found that "protective soft-shell padding did not reduce head impact kinematic outcomes among college football athletes".[26]
References
- ^ "Guardian Caps". Guardian Sports. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b c Seifert, Kevin (March 29, 2022). "Seeking to reduce head contact, NFL mandates use of Guardian Cap helmet for early portion of training camp". ESPN. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Spencer, Donna (June 9, 2023). "'Guardian cap' to prevent head injuries mandated for practices, CFL says". Global News. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b "Guardian Caps, a soft-shell helmet cover, among CFL's new player-safety initiatives". CBC.ca. May 16, 2023. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b Murray, Jack (April 26, 2024). "NFL Authorizes In-Game Use of Guardian Caps on Players' Helmets for 2024 Season". Bleacher Report. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b White, Elizabeth (May 3, 2024). "Auburn football using Guardian Caps during practices to protect student-athletes". CBS 42. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ ISSN 0778-3906.
- ^ Guardian Sports. "Guardian Caps". Retrieved May 27, 2024.
- ^ Guardian Sports. "Company". Retrieved May 27, 2024.
- ^ Casselberry, Ian (April 26, 2024). "NFL to allow players to wear protective Guardian Caps in games beginning with 2024 season". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Davis (April 26, 2024). "NFL will allow players to wear Guardian Caps during games starting in 2024 season". USA Today. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- NFL.com. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b Weinfuss, Josh (July 29, 2022). "Arizona Cardinals' J.J. Watt critical of Guardian Cap: 'Feel like a bobblehead'". ESPN. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ NFL.com. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b Benjamin, Cody (August 11, 2023). "NFL executive hints that Guardian Caps could eventually be worn in games, along with position-specific helmets". CBS Sports. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b Florio, Mike (August 20, 2023). "If a player wanted to wear a Guardian Cap during a game, the league would prohibit it". NBC Sports. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ Sports Business Journal. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ Dajani, Jordan (April 26, 2024). "NFL allows players the option to wear Guardian Caps over helmets during regular-season games". CBS Sports. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b Seifert, Kevin (April 26, 2024). "NFL to allow Guardian Caps on helmets during regular season". ESPN. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b Grantland, Dan (April 26, 2024). "NFL Players Will Now Be Allowed to Wear Protective 'Guardian Caps' in Games". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ a b Schlepp, Travis (April 26, 2024). "NFL authorizes padded 'Guardian Caps' for use in regular season games". KTLA. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ Smith, Michael David (August 16, 2023). "NFL says positions wearing Guardian Caps saw 52% decrease in concussions". NBC Sports. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ Erickson, Mandy (March 28, 2023). "Padded helmet cover shows little protection for football players". Scope. Stanford University School of Medicine. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- PMID 28771033.
- PMID 37734732.
- PMID 37947549.