Head impact exposure following adoption of a soft-shell football helmet add-on: A pilot exploration into potential influence on contact behavior

The purpose of this research was to explore the immediate response in player behavior following adoption of a Guardian Cap, soft-shell, aftermarket football helmet add-on. Twenty-five NCAA Division I American football players wore dental-scanned and custom-fitted instrumented mouthguards to record head impacts in a total of six pre-season practice plan matched sessions, three sessions wearing helmets as normal, followed by three with a Guardian Cap helmet add-on. Our most important findings revealed a subset of players whose sustained impact force increased after immediate adoption of the Guardian Cap. This change was due to an increase in head impact frequency, primarily to the front and top of the helmet; an indicator of head-first contact behavior. Given the rising popularity of this type of equipment, combined with historical lessons in the sport of football when it comes to unintended behavioral changes due to advancing head protection, it is essential that future research using similar methodology be carried out in a larger sample.