25 July 2023 , 17:11
1240
0
Joe Burrow has changed helmets in a bid to prevent concussions ahead of the 2023 season - taking the opposite approach to Aaron Rodgers.
Throughout his career in the NFL and at college with LSU, Burrow has worn the league's most popular helmet - the Riddell SpeedFlex - the same one worn by the likes of Tom Brady, Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen.
But he'll be switching to a new Vicis helmet - a new lid which is made specifically for quarterbacks. Patrick Mahomes has worn Vicis helmets throughout his career in the NFL, and could also make the move to wear the new helmet. Vicis helmets are noticeably bigger than Riddell's and Schutt's - the two most worn helmets.
Burrow has yet to have a concussion on record at either LSU or with the Cincinnati Bengals, but it appears he is taking no chances. Speaking last year, Burrow has stated that he has had head injuries - and will look to do all he can to prevent them.
He said: "Yeah it's definitely happened (head injuries). For sure. Stuff like that happens all the time. It’s more of a fuzzy recollection - you don’t remember the individual plays, but you remember what happened in the game.
Joe Burrow backs Patrick Mahomes after Kansas City Chiefs reach Super Bowl
"That's part of the game. You’re gonna have head injuries, you’re gonna tear your ACL, you’re gonna break your arm. That’s the game that we play. That’s the life that we live. And we get paid handsomely for it."
Whilst Burrow is proactively changing equipment, New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers has played the majority of his career with the same helmet and has at times come in for criticism as a result.
Aaron Rodgers still wears an old helmet model (AP)Rodgers had worn the same helmet for over 10 years, with his old Schutt not being deemed safe after an NFLPA biochemical test - examining 45 different models in the NFL.
The quarterback had said he had an issue with being forced to switch his helmet, but did so after having two concussions in a season - admitting his old one was a 'little outdated'.
In a 2020 interview, he said: "I was wearing the one like Favrey (Brett Favre) was wearing for so long. That was a little outdated, probably, and then I think around that time when the CBA got signed, they had some better regulations about the safety quality of the helmets, and I’ve just kind of been up to date for years.
"Last year, my helmet – because there’s been such advancements in helmet safety – my helmet was in the not-as-safe category but anybody wearing that got one more year to find a new helmet. I knew coming in I was going to have to change."