NFL Launches $100K Challenge to Reinvent the Facemask and Tackle Concussions Head-On

As the confetti settles on Super Bowl Sunday, the NFL is already looking ahead—not just to next season’s championship, but to the future of player safety. In a bold move that could reshape the game forever, the league has unveiled the latest phase of its HealthTECH Challenge series: a high-stakes, crowdsourced competition aimed at reinventing the football helmet’s facemask to dramatically reduce concussions.

The announcement came Friday at the NFL’s annual innovation summit, held in the shadow of the Super Bowl. Jeff Miller, the NFL’s executive vice president overseeing player health and safety, laid out the stakes in no uncertain terms: “What we haven’t seen over that period of time are any changes of any note to the facemask,” Miller said. “Now we see, given the changes in our concussion numbers and injuries to players, that as changes are made to the helmet, fewer and fewer concussions are caused by hits to the shell, and more and more concussions as a percentage are by hits to the facemask.”

The numbers are sobering. While the league has made strides in reducing overall concussion rates through innovations in helmet shells and padding—including the introduction of position-specific helmets tailored to the unique risks faced by quarterbacks, linemen, and other players—the facemask has remained stubbornly unchanged. Yet, data gathered by the NFL shows that 44% of in-game concussions this past season resulted from impact to the player’s facemask, up from 29% in 2015. That’s not just a statistic; it’s a wake-up call.

The HealthTECH Challenge II is the NFL’s answer. The competition invites inventors, engineers, startups, academic teams, and established companies to submit designs that improve how facemasks absorb and dissipate the forces of impact. The goal is twofold: to enhance the protection offered by the facemask and to rethink its design for the modern game, where speed, power, and collisions have never been greater.

Winners will be announced in August and will receive up to $100,000 in aggregate funding, plus expert development support to help move their concepts from the lab to the playing field. Miller is optimistic about the timeline: “We expect helmet manufacturers to start implementing any improvements into helmets soon after that.”

This isn’t just about incremental change—it’s about reimagining a fundamental piece of football equipment. The facemask, long taken for granted, is now in the crosshairs of innovation. As the NFL continues to grapple with the long-term health consequences of the sport, this challenge represents a pivotal moment: a chance to protect the players who make the game possible, while preserving the intensity and excitement that fans love.

The stakes couldn’t be higher. Every hit, every tackle, every collision is a reminder of the risks these athletes take. The NFL’s challenge is more than a call for new ideas—it’s a commitment to the future of football, and to the millions who play and watch the game. As the world watches, the next great leap in player safety may well come from a garage, a lab, or a startup halfway across the globe. The clock is ticking, and the game is on.

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