By Holt Hackney
Late last month, the NFL and NFLPA conducted a joint review of the application of the concussion protocol involving New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart during the team’s Week Six game against the Philadelphia Eagles on October 9.
What they found, after reviewing “the relevant reports and video and jointly interview(ing) members of the club medical staff, independent medical providers, coaches and players, was that the team medical staff and unaffiliated medical providers properly followed all of the steps required by the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and administered concussion protocol in their evaluation of Mr. Dart.”
At the same time, however, the League was critical of the Giants, Head Coach Brian Daboll, and running back Cam Skattebo for Daboll and Skattebo’s actions during the game. Specifically, the coach and player entered the blue injury tent, while Dart was being evaluated for a concussion. Coaches are forbidden from entering the tent during an examination, per the CBA.
“While the parties agreed that Coach Daboll’s and Mr. Skattebo’s actions had no actual impact on the exam or the care that Mr. Dart received, their conduct was inconsistent with and demonstrated a disregard for the concussion protocol’s requirements,” the NFL and NFLPA wrote in a joint statement.
The Giants were fined $200,000, while Daboll was fined $100,000 and Skattebo $15,000 for “conduct detrimental to the league.”
In a post-game press conference, Daboll, who has since been fired because of the team’s performance, said: “There’s a lot of emotions, and I certainly am an emotional guy. I apologized directly to our team physician. I just wanted (Dart’s) ass out there if he was OK. But I wanted the process — like we were getting ready to go for it on a potential fourth down. I would have burned a timeout if he could have gone out there. So, I was asking, ‘How long is it going to take?’ So again, you want your guy out there — not at risk of anything else. But, you know, (Rodeo) came out, ‘I think he’s going to be good.’ I’m like, ‘Is he going to be good, or not? I’m gonna call a timeout on fourth down and go for the (first down), you know?”
In a statement, Giants owner John Mara, who is a member of the NFL’s Health and Safety Committee, said on October 10: “I spoke to Coach Daboll this morning about approaching the medical tent last night. While I firmly believe, as he has stated, that he was not trying to influence the process in any way, he understands that the appearance of going to the tent is inappropriate. We have protocols in place as a league to ensure player safety, and we need to allow our medical staff to execute those protocols without interference.”
In the NFL-NFLPA statement, they addressed the aforementioned prohibition against coaches entering the blue tent:
“When the protocol is triggered, all gameday concussion evaluations must take place either in the sideline blue medical tent or in the locker room, to ensure that the player receives a thorough examination without distraction. The concussion protocol states that ‘only medical personnel deemed essential to the care of the athlete may be present for the tent and/or locker room evaluation. This includes the team physician best qualified to evaluate concussion, the club athletic trainer, and the sideline Unaffiliated Neurotrauma Consultant.’ No other individuals are permitted in the tent or locker room during an evaluation.
“The NFL and NFLPA concluded that the Giants violated the protocol when Head Coach Brian Daboll and running back Cam Skattebo entered the medical tent and spoke with Mr. Dart before his evaluation was complete, creating the perception that they were interfering with Dart’s exam. While the parties agreed that Coach Daboll’s and Mr. Skattebo’s actions had no actual impact on the exam or the care that Mr. Dart received, their conduct was inconsistent with and demonstrated a disregard for the concussion protocol’s requirements and therefore constituted a violation. The parties also noted that the Giants undertook immediate remedial steps to prevent any similar violation in the future, including by cooperating fully with the joint review, conducting additional training with club staff and players about proper use of the medical tent and taking additional steps to ensure that only permitted individuals are able to enter the medical tent during a concussion evaluation.”
