The league and players union have worked hard in recent years to make certain that doctors-not coaches-make medical decisions regarding players.
Some of us senior alumni years ago experienced quick sideline “medical discussions” with coaches and/or team doctors which led to us immediately being sent back into the game.
Although those days are long behind us, the medical lines between team doctors and coaches still occasionally can get blurred.
In a nationally-televised game this past Thursday between the Giants and Eagles, such a situation appeared to have occurred. The Giants behind their rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart were moving the ball in the third quarter against the defending Super Bowl champions. Dart scrambled on one play and appeared to have suffered a blow to the head. He quickly was taken off the field and Giants doctors took him into the all-too-familiar blue tent on the sidelines.
League protocol under such circumstances is that the player receives a thorough examination without distraction in the tent or the locker room. Only medical personnel deemed essential to the care of the athlete may be present for that evaluation. No other individuals are permitted in the tent or locker room during the evaluation. That includes coaches or other players. Clubs are responsible for ensuring compliance with this requirement.
Giants coach Brian Daboll was seen on national television approaching the tent while the evaluation of his quarterback was being performed. He also was seen in a somewhat-heated conversation (for which he later apologized) with the team doctor about Dart’s ability to return to the game.
Giants owner John Mara issued a statement the day after the team’s victory: “We have protocols in place as a league to ensure player safety. We need to allow our medical staff to execute these protocols without interference. I spoke to Coach Daboll this morning about approaching the tent. While I firmly believe, as he 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.”
The league office distributed a memo over the weekend to front office personnel, coaches, and medical staff in the wake of this incident. The league reminded all parties that discipline for violating these medical protocols may include reprimand, remedial training, fines and/or loss of draft picks if it is determined that competitive considerations motivated the club’s failure to comply with the protocols.
The league office stated late last week that the entire incident was being reviewed in conjunction with the NFLPA under the terms of the current collective bargaining agreement.
