what are the helmet covers nfl players wear

Those padded helmet covers NFL players are wearing are called Guardian Caps , and they are soft-shell pads that go over the regular helmet to reduce head-impact force and help lower concussion risk.

What those “helmet covers” are

• The covers are officially known as Guardian Caps, made by a company called Guardian Sports.

• They are soft, padded shells that strap onto the outside of a standard hard NFL helmet.

• In games, teams often add a colored or logo wrap over the white cap so it still matches the usual helmet design.

Why NFL players wear them

• The main goal is extra safety: the added padding helps soften collisions and reduce the force transferred to a player’s head.

• The NFL has cited data showing meaningful reductions in concussion rates for position groups that use the caps in practices, with internal league estimates around a double‑digit percentage drop in impact severity.

• This is part of a broader league push over the last few seasons to address long‑term brain health and make head impacts less severe.

When they are required or optional

• Guardian Caps first showed up in NFL training camps, where select high‑contact positions (like offensive and defensive linemen, tight ends, and linebackers) were required to wear them during certain practices.

• The mandate expanded so that more positions had to wear them in contact practices across training camp and in‑season practices, though some positions (like quarterbacks and kicking specialists) have usually been exempt.

• For regular‑season games, players are allowed (but not forced) to wear Guardian Caps on the field, which is why you now see some guys with the padded look on game days and others without it.

Do they actually work?

• Lab and league testing suggests the caps can reduce the force of helmet‑to‑helmet impacts by roughly 10–20% or more in some scenarios, especially when both players are wearing them.

• NFL officials have pointed to roughly a 50% reduction in concussions among certain position groups during periods where Guardian Caps were mandatory in practices, compared with previous years without them.

• Some researchers and fans still debate how much protection they really add in real‑world play, but they are widely used now at youth, high school, college, and pro levels as an extra layer of safety.

How fans and players are talking about them

• Many players like the idea of more protection but joke that the caps look a bit “goofy” or “puffy,” which is one reason adoption in actual games has been slower than in practice.

• On forums, you’ll see people asking exactly your question—“what are the helmet covers NFL players wear?”—and the top answers almost always identify them as Guardian Caps and explain the concussion‑reduction angle.

• As concern about head injuries keeps growing, the trend is toward more visible protective gear like this, even if it changes the traditional look of the NFL a bit.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.