Pigskin Dispatch Podcast’s Darin Hayes and I discuss the evolution of safety standards for player equipment. The focus of football early rules was the protection other players on the field. Then, a shift occurred in which the equipment standards protected the players wearing the equipment.
Watch or listen to the podcast here or on other podcast feeds. You can read the original Tidbit below.
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Brilliant breakdown of how safety priorities flipped in football gear. That shift from "dont hurt others" to "protect yourself" basically mirrors how liability thinking changed in American sports more broadly. I remeber coaching youth ball and noticing how modern helmets almost encourage harder hits because kids feel invincible, which sorta defeats the original intent.