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Introduction of the First Helmet
In the 1920's, the very frist football helmets were used in the sport of football. The first helmets were made of leather with very little padding on the inside. The little padding provided little to no protection for the players. Although they were insufficient they were used widely in the sport. These helmets will need to be improved greatly to protect the players in the game. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000095139/article/history-of-the-nfl-football-helmet -
New and Improved Helmets
In the 1940's the first ever chin strap was added on to the helmet which secured it a little more. By 1943 all NFL players were required to wear these helmnets for their own safety. Soon the NFL adopted the plastic helmets which were patented in the 1930's. In 1955 the face bar was added to the helmet for more protection features. The face bars lead to double face bars in 1962. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000095139/article/history-of-the-nfl-football-helmet -
Helpful Helmets
In 1971 Riddell installs air bladders to soften impacts of the players. Going back to the face, a full face mask is introduced in 1975. In 1984, helmets with visors made their way into the NFL along with the first polycarbonate helmet in 1986. With the whole face mask appearance, the NFL required all face masks to be transparent in 1998. At this point the NFL is trying to keep the helmet from becoming too flashy. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000095139/article/history-of-the-nfl-football -
Safety Changes
The 2000's Riddell developed a helmet to reduce concussions known as the Revolution Helmet. The 2000's were more concerned more about the safety of the players. New version of the football helmet were made to see which were the safest for the NFL. The pads in the helmet had to be capable to take a hard impact to reduce injury as much as possible. Many players wanted the best to protect them and wanted them to feel safe in the hands of their equipment. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap10000000951 -
Future of the Helmet
In 2011 the Indicator chin strap launched. It was designed to identify head injury. The NFL became more aware and decided that the chin strap would be the best decision for the player. The players take so many hits that it is important that they are protected at all times. Soon more and more features are going to be added to the helmet. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000095139/article/history-of-the-nfl-football-helmet
