New NFL Rules on Concussions Is Same Old-Same Old

Last week, the NFL instituted a policy change designed to change the “hear no evil-see no evil” attitude of those on the side line to the reporting of concussions. 

Under the new rules, a certified athletic trainer, paid by the league, will be at each game to monitor play and provide medical staffs with "any relevant information that may assist them in determining the most appropriate evaluation and treatment," the NFL said in a statement Wednesday.

The trainer's "role will be to provide information to team medical staffs that might have been missed due to a lack of a clear view of the play or because they were attending to other players or duties," the statement said.

The problem with this new rule is that the certified trainer can't order that players be removed from a game. Unless the NFL puts teeth into its new found religion when it comes to concussion, it will still be the same old, same old.