The NFL and the NFL Players Association have begun a review process into why Monday's game between the New England Patriots and Arizona Cardinals wasn't stopped by officials, medical personnel or concussion spotters when Patriots wide receiver DeVante Parker stumbled following a hard hit while catching the football in the first half, according ESPN.
Play appeared to continue as the Patriots were rushing to snap the ball in order to avoid a replay review that could have overturned Parker's catch. Teammate and fellow wide receiver Nelson Agholor, meanwhile, was waving his hands to stop the game so that Parker could exit the field of play.
Shoutout to Nelson Agholor. It looked like he noticed DeVante Parker was concussed and tried to get the play stopped. Great teammate. pic.twitter.com/uKuCFX7ktn
— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) December 13, 2022
Parker addressed the situation in an Instagram story on Monday, calling out the NFL for how it handled the situation and thanking Agholor for looking out for him. (You can see the Instagram story, here.)
This isn't the first time during the 2022 season that the NFLPA has requested an investigation into the handling of players dealing with what appeared to be head trauma. The NFLPA also began a review after Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was allowed to return to a Sept. 25 game against the Buffalo Bills despite his head slamming into the ground and stumbling while trying to get back to the line of scrimmage. Tagovailoa was allowed to return in the second half of that game. He was then cleared to play in a game four days later on "Thursday Night Football" against the Cincinnati Bengals, and Tagovailoa hit his head on the ground again, suffering a concussion that caused him to be rushed to the hospital.
Following that review process, the unaffiliated neurotrauma consultant for the Bills game was fired as the NFL and the players' union amended the concussion protocol. The two sides agreed to alter the protocol by adding ataxia to the list of "no-go" symptoms.
"'Ataxia' is defined as abnormality of balance/stability, motor coordination or dysfunctional speech caused by a neurological issue," the joint statement spelled out. "In other words, if a player is diagnosed with 'ataxia' by any club or neutral physician involved in the application of the Concussion Protocol, he will be prohibited from returning to the game, and will receive the follow-up care required by the Protocol."
Parker suffered his head injury on a 10-yard catch with 4:19 left in the first quarter following a hit from Arizona Cardinals cornerback Antonio Hamilton. The wide receiver has 25 receptions for 460 yards and one touchdown in 2022, his first season with New England after playing his first seven years with the Miami Dolphins.
