SportsDonald Trump2016 electionNFL

Donald Trump Mocks 'Softer' NFL Concussion Rules

"Got a little ding on the head ... you can't play for the rest of the season."
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Mike Segar/Reuters

GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump made fun of the rules the NFL has in place to treat football players who suffer concussions during a campaign rally on Wednesday, saying again that the league is “soft” in its handling of brain injuries.

“Look, that woman’s coming back,” Trump said about a supporter who had apparently fainted at the Lakeland, Florida, event and then returned. “That woman was out cold and now she’s coming back! See, we don’t go by these new and very much softer NFL rules.”

“Concussion! Oh! Oh! Got a little ding on the head, no, no, you can’t play for the rest of the season,” continued Trump, who in 2014 failed in his bid to buy an NFL team. “Our people are tough.”

The NFL approved new concussion rules before the 2016 season that included potential fines and the loss of draft picks for teams that failed to remove players suspected of suffering concussions from a game, after the old and apparently very much not softer concussion rules allowed players like then-St. Louis Rams quarterback Case Keenum to remain in the game despite taking a severe hit to the head last season. 

The league has faced years of scrutiny over its handling of concussions, including a lawsuit from thousands of former players that the NFL settled for $765 million.

Trump’s argument might trivialize serious brain injuries, but it will likely go over well with those who believe the “liberal media” is engaged in a “war on football.”

Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularlyincitespolitical violence and is a

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Before You Go

Former NFL Players With CTE
Tyler Sash, 27(01 of04)
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Defensive back and Super Bowl winner Tyler Sash died in 2015 at the age of 27 due to a painkiller overdose. After his family donated Sash's brain, Boston University researchers said he had CTE that "advanced to a stage rarely seen in someone his age." (credit:Jason O. Watson/Getty Images)
Mike Webster, 50(02 of04)
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Mike Webster's 2002 autopsy has been called the examination that "changed football." Neuropathologist Bennet Omalu's resulting report that linked playing football to CTE was the focus of a Frontline investigation and the feature film "Concussion" -- and sparked countless conversations about the safety of the game. (credit:George Gojkovic/Getty Images)
Earl Morrall, 79(03 of04)
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When quarterback Earl Morrall died in 2014 at age 79 due to issues with Parkinson's, he had the most severe state of CTE, his family later confirmed. (credit:Kidwiler Collection/Getty Images)
Dave Duerson, 50(04 of04)
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Former Chicago Bears defensive back Dave Duerson shot himself in the chest at age 50 after reportedly suffering years of cognitive and motor issues. He left behind a suicide note that read, “Please, see that my brain is given to the N.F.L.’s brain bank.” Duerson was later found to have CTE. (credit:Kidwiler Collection/Getty Images)
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