NFL tries fixing concussion protocol on fly

As the NFL’s regular-season calendar is closing, the league has attempted to address its broken concussion protocol system.

The NFL has made significant changes to the protocol, including adding a neurotrauma consultant to the league command center for all games, according to an ESPN report.

The consultant reportedly was in the command center, used primarily for replay challenges, starting with games in Week 15, NFL chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills told ESPN.

“We are constantly looking at the protocol and how it’s applied and trying to get better,” Sills said. “The process happens through the season.”

The league’s concussion protocol has come under fire in recent weeks after a number of scary incidents.

The most shocking moment came Dec. 10, when Texans quarterback Tom Savage was seen trembling after a particularly vicious hit, then re-entered the game.

It was not the first time a player had gone back out on the field when he likely should have entered the concussion protocol, but the Savage incident was notable for the images of the quarterback’s hands shaking as he lay on the ground, unable to get up.

Texans coach Bill O’Brien said he did not witness the incident and would not have sent Savage back in the game if he had seen the video.

This week, the Seahawks became the first team in the NFL to be fined for violating the concussion protocol, getting docked $100,000 for their handling of quarterback Russell Wilson’s head injury in Week 10.

Wilson was sent off the field by officials to receive medical attention after a hit to the chin, but instead of meeting with medical officials on the sideline, Wilson sat out one play then returned to action. Under the protocol, a player is required to receive an evaluation if a referee deems it necessary.

In addition to adding a consultant to the command center, the league made other changes, among them:

Any player exhibiting signs of impact seizure will be removed from the game and will not be eligible to return.

A referee who removes a player from the game for suspected head trauma must notify the medical staff, a change clearly meant to address the Seahawks infraction.