Concussions and player safety have been a hot topic items for the NFL the last few years, and although the league expresses a desire to make the game more safe for its players, it’s hard believe that’s the case when you watch games like last Thursday’s season opener between the Panthers and the Broncos where quarterback Cam Newton took a number of questionable hits that went unpenalized.
While Newton decided to take the politically correct route of not criticizing officials or the league following the game, his teammates, including Greg Olsen, aren’t holding back when asked if the NFL really cares about safety as much as they say they do. ESPN reporter David Newton posted this video of the tight end accusing the league of “talking out of both sides of their mouth” in regard to the issue.
The NFL and NFLPA are reviewing the helmet-to-helmet hit Newton sustained during Thursday’s game and released this statement about their concussion protocol.
The NFLPA will initiate a compliance investigation into the Cam Newton incident from Thursday night's game.
— NFLPA (@NFLPA) September 11, 2016
Our statement on Concussion Protocol review pic.twitter.com/tq4sChAZOK
— Brian McCarthy (@NFLprguy) September 11, 2016
All of this won’t help Carolina get a win back, but maybe the refs will stop swallowing their whistles when opposing players target Newton. Let him get some of that Tom Brady treatment for a change.