With head injuries in spotlight, Safety Summit gives players chance to ask questions, get info

Head injuries highlight Safety Summit

INDIANAPOLIS — The information came at the players like an all-out blitz as manufacturers explained why their products are the best and safest.

Though the topics were wide-ranging, head injuries topped the list at the NFL Players Association’s second Player Safety and Welfare Summit on Friday.

Some 25 players saw presentations from helmet manufacturers and medical personnel that included lots of charts and videos of helmets getting squashed like crash test dummies. Shoe companies, turf producers and nutrition experts also made presentations, but protecting the head took center stage.

Carolina Panthers receiver Muhsin Muhammad says most players “have a brief overview” of concussions and their long-term effects, but they’re getting a more in-depth lesson from the league and union in the wake of a high-profile study at the University of Michigan that found retired players had a higher-than-normal rate of Alzheimer’s disease and other health problems.

The NFL last season adopted stricter standards for governing when players can return to games after big collisions, and for the first time is giving players at this week’s combine tests to establish baseline brain activity. Prospects are also facing more questions about their concussion histories.

On Friday, some players got to ask questions of their own, and many were surprised by the answers. One shocker to some was this: They can choose their helmet.