Chalk this one up as "not Vikings particular, but football worthy enough to mention anyways". We are all well aware of three things around here when it comes to concussions and the NFL- first, they often have horrific side-effects down the road; second, due to said side-effects, the league is taking a stronger (and better) stance on the subject; and third, as shown with Browns QB Colt McCoy this season, we still haven't perfected the processes surrounding concussed players.

In light of that third point in particular I find this news fascinating- Patriots running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis (he of the four names in one) will be outfitted with a new chinstrap for the Super Bowl, which will either have a green light when all is well, or will flash red to indicate the likelihood of a concussion.

Pretty cool if you ask me. I've often said it before- none of us want football players being reduced to slobbering, staggering man-children at the age of 50 just for our entertainment. Again, some of the stories regarding past super stars and what they are going through now thanks to those injuries are the stuff of nightmares. Hopefully this product proves it's worth- not by Green-Ellis getting a concussion, of course- but in the future ‘field tests' and whatnot this technology surely will be going through, and it's something we may be seeing become the league norm, if not league mandated, in the near future.

I know for sure that one of our players - safety Husain Abdullah - would likely appreciate this technology. Again, while sometimes concussions are spotted quickly and relatively easily, that's not always the case- again shown by McCoy earlier in the regular season.

For more info, including some more of the technical specs on this, check out the original article from NFL.com here.