New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart made headlines recently for questioning the NFL's concussion protocol, something an ESPN analyst took him to task for. After a recent preseason game in which Dart took a significant blow from a defender, was screened for a concussion and then returned to throw a touchdown, the passer seemed to imply he didn't need to be checked out. "As far as the blue tent, I really respect the rules and the thought behind what the NFL has of keeping players healthy and reviewing things.
At the same time, I'm still puzzled by it just feeling like every time that I get hit, I find my way in there, which times I still try to wrap my head around," Dart said. The popular consensus seems to be that Dart absolutely needed to be checked for a concussion, and ESPN's Myron Medcalf wasn't having it. Alluding to Dart's history of multiple concussions and hits to the head in his rookie season, Medcalf defended the decision to have Dart checked out.
"This guy has had a concussion, he's been hurt," he said on "First Take." "That's a real thing. I think a lot of people watching that game, when you saw that hit, you thought, 'Man, that looked pretty bad.' I think if you're a Giants fan, you want your organization, you want the NFL to err on the side of caution. I think Jaxson Dart owes the organization, owes the NFL an apology." Medcalf further explained that Dart, as the quarterback and de facto leader of the Giants, could be imperiling his teammates' health with that kind of statement.
"As the face of the New York Giants, he cannot have a flippant attitude about concussion protocol," he said. "What does that do to the other guys on the team if Jaxson Dart is questioning the protocol? Does that make other guys go, 'Well, maybe I don't want to let anyone know that I have certain symptoms or I'm dealing with things.' We dealt with that in the NFL for so many years, which is how we got to this point.
The concussion protocol worked, which is why Jaxson Dart found himself in the blue medical tent. I think that's a good thing, considering his history. I don't think there's a narrative against him.
I just think there's an effort to make sure in moments like that, that a guy like that gets the proper care and attention he needs." Whether Dart comes around to that point of view remains to be seen, but it seems like the next time he takes a hard hit, he will indeed be back in the blue medical tent, whether he wants to be there or not.
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