For New Orleans Saints fans watching the Sept. 13 game against the Detroit Lions, the best thing was the team’s steady comeback from a 21-0 deficit. The Saints took the game into overtime but lost 31-30 when they went for the win with a 2-point conversion that failed.
The Saints fared better in their second game, at Baltimore, outscoring the Ravens 15-0 in the fourth quarter to leave town with a 24-17 victory that nobody expected.
Wins and losses aside, the most important thing about the two games was something most people noticed but didn’t discuss too much. It is that Saints wide receiver Chris Olave wore extra padding on his helmet designed to improve head protection during collisions.
Most football fans have seen the helmets in either NFL or college games, where a small percentage of players wear them. They’re easy to spot because of their large size, and because the color usually is slightly different from standard headgear. Olave’s was a shade lighter than the regular gold Saints helmets.
The devices are called a Guardian Cap. They’ve actually been available since 2010 and are used more often in practices. But Olave explained after the Lions game why he has started wearing one. It’s for all the right reasons.
“You all know the head injuries I’ve had in my career,” said Olave, who has had four concussions since joining the Saints, including a string of them in 2024 that made him consider quitting the game. “So it was just a decision I’ve made. I got kids now. I want to be able to live the long game, it’s not all about football. I want to live regular life after football. I love my kids to death. I don’t really care how it looks and shoot, it did me good today.”
It sure did: Olave caught 10 passes for 182 yards against Detroit. At Baltimore, he had another 9 receptions for 86 yards and a touchdown The Guardian Cap didn’t have anything to do with his stats, but the CBSsports website reports that the specialty gear appears to be doing its job by protecting players’ heads.
Nola.com, the Times-Picayune’s website in New Orleans, wrote that Olave started wearing the Guardian Cap — a soft, padded shell that attaches to the exterior of the helmet and adds a second shock absorber — during training camp. On a play when he leaped to catch a ball, he came down hard, hit his head on the ground and felt the difference right away. That convinced him to wear the cap during games.
Good decision. Football has two health problems. One is that everyone who plays gets hurt in some way. The sport basically has a 100% injury rate.
The other is that there are a lot of head injuries, made clear by the number of concussions reported every week during a season. This count has been growing because the NFL and colleges, and hopefully other levels as well, are paying closer attention to players who “get their bell rung” during a game.
CBSsports reported the Guardian Cap’s website claims studies have shown a 54% to 62% reduction in concussions during practice among players who are required to wear the helmet. Further, “Laboratory testing claims protection doubles when both players involved in a collision wear Guardian Caps.”
Widespread evidence of the benefits may not have arrived yet. But it’s only logical to believe the extra padding will reduce head injuries.
The Guardian Cap has not caught on with many football players yet. Candidly, they are kind of goofy looking. But it’s like Olave said: If a second shock absorber provides better protection for a player’s head, that should decrease the possibility of brain damage that can be caused by a very violent game.
Each player needs to decide how to protect themselves during a game. But when a top receiver like Olave, along with players like New England wide receiver Romeo Doubs and Houston safety Jalen Pitre, put a priority on their health rather than their helmet, other players are sure to follow. And the Guardian Cap is likely to get better as the years pass and research tells designers how they can improve it.
— Jack Ryan, McComb Enterprise-Journal
