Concussion experts encourage CFLers to wear Guardian Caps, but say athletes shouldn't feel 'immortal'

Canadian doctors and brain injury experts believe Canadian Football League players should be encouraged to use Guardian Caps whenever they have the opportunity, but say the technology does not mitigate the risk of concussion.

The CFL announced on May 15 that players will be allowed to wear Guardian Caps — protective soft-shell helmet covers — during games this season as part of a new series of health-and-safety measures. The league also mandated mouthguards, becoming the first professional league in North America to do so.

Dr. Charles Tator and Dr. Carmela Tartaglia — leadership members of the University Health Network's Canadian Concussion Centre, a team of world leaders in brain injuries, imaging, genetics, clinical care, neuropsychology and psychiatry — both said they haven't seen enough data to convince them that the soft-shell cap can protect against concussions.

Dr. Blaine Hoshizaki, director of the Neurotrauma Impact Science Laboratory at the University of Ottawa and internationally-recognized for head and brain injury research, went so far as to say no technology can.

Dr. Ravi Menon, world-renowned for his work in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and Dr. Tartaglia both said the cap could possibly blunt the more severe blows to the head, but can't help with subconcussive impacts, also known as a subconcussion, which is any impact that doesn't result in a diagnosed concussion.

Their claims are consistent with results from a 2023 peer-reviewed study from Stanford University, published in the Annals of Biomedical Engineering. The study reported reduced impact on the soft shell compared to a bare helmet when tested in a laboratory. However, on-field results reported no significant differences between the