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Saturday night during the Chiefs and Dolphins Wild Card Game, Patrick Mahomes’ helmet shattered when he lowered his head into a Miami defender’s helmet during a run near the goal line.
It was something almost no one had ever seen happen before, but then again, there was a wind chill of minus-27 degrees, making it the fourth-coldest game in NFL history.
There was much controversy about why officials stopped the clock in order to allow Patrick Mahomes to change helmets without coming out of the game, calling a time out or being called for delay of game.
“Equipment change, they stopped the clock, he really should have to go out or they take a time-out,” 17-year NFL referee Terry McAulay said during the “historic” broadcast.
There were also many fans were concerned about why the helmet broke into pieces in the first place.
On Tuesday, Certor Sports, the company that manufactured the VICIS ZERO2 helmet Mahomes was wearing when it shattered, issued a statement to answer that question.
“At VICIS, athlete safety is our top priority,” the press release read. “Extreme conditions like those experienced in Saturday evening’s NFL playoff game are bound to test the limits of even the highest performing products.
“While outer shell damage is not ideal, the ZERO2 helmet did its job of protecting Patrick Mahomes during a head-to-head impact in unprecedented cold temperatures.
“The exclusive multi-layer technology employed in the VICIS ZERO2 helmet model utilizes a deformable outer shell, RFLX impact absorption layer, followed by a stiff inner shell. This design approach is similar to the crumple zone of modern cars, effectively absorbing and dispersing impact forces at the point of contact.”
“This technology, which has earned the top ratings of the NFL Performance Testing rankings and sits atop the Virginia Tech ratings, has been adopted by several athletes across the NFL, NCAA, and throughout high school and youth football,” the statement continued.
“VICIS helmets are extensively tested in high-impact conditions across a wide range of temperatures. We are committed to continuing our development of the safest helmets in football and working with our partners in the NFL and other organizations to constantly gain knowledge and continuously advance protective technology. We remain focused on protecting athletes at every level of play by developing the highest performing products available.
“As the leader in technology advancement within the football protective space, our confidence in the superior performance of our helmet designs has never been greater.”
So there you go. Now we just have to figure out why Patrick Mahomes was given special treatment by NFL officials after his helmet shattered.