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First helmets
protective gear for football has been around since about 1896 but were not used much until later years and were originally made from soft leather pieces that absorbed a lot of heat and were not very protective -
First uses in NFL
up until the 20's some football players had played with no helmets but then after that it was required to wear a helmet to prevent blows to the head putting in place some of the first regulations -
Better materials
people started to make the helmets sturdier out of stronger harder leather and now with chinstraps to prevent them from coming off easily -
First plastic helmets
put in by the NFL was the first plastic helmets with the added face mask and better and improved inner padding these ended the leather helmet era and are still used to this day -
injury prevention
the first energy absorbent helmets made it way easier for players to take blows more lightly and also helped somewhat in stooping concussions -
improved shells
used harder material made from poly carbonate plastic instead of regular which is much stronger also added a new grilled face mask and also a way to add visors to further help protect
