Guardian Caps prevent football-related head injuries and are growing in popularity

At a quick glance, Guardian Caps are an oversized padded protective covering for football helmets that give players a much different appearance, compared to the look of traditional helmets.

However, beyond their bulky design, over the past several years they have become a vital piece of football safety equipment and are commonplace within the sport, worn by players at all levels -- minor football, university and professional.

"I don’t mind them," said Saint Mary’s University football player Liam MacDonald. "You get used to it after a couple days and they take the initial pop out of the hits."

According to neurosurgeon Dr. Neilank Jha, Guardian Caps have resulted in a decrease in concussions for NFL players who wear them, and their implementation signalled a shift towards stricter standards of player protection and safety. Their soft shell design helps reduce the impact, potential head trauma and other injuries in this full-contact sport.

FILE - Guardian Caps, the mushroom-like contraptions NFL players are wearing on their helmets during training camp, are part of an ongoing safety experiment the league hopes will lead to a reduction in head injuries. (Gerald Herbert / AP Photo, File)

"I think everyone is aligned to make the sport safer, the players, the owners and administrators," Jha said. "The technology of Guardian Caps with the soft outer shell and hard inner core, from a physics perspective makes sense."

CFL and NFL players have the option to wear Guardian Caps in games, but players mostly choose to use them only in practice and training camps. Five Indianapolis Colts players wore them in a recent preseason NFL preseason game.

TSN football analyst Dave Naylor said that was a notable breakthrough and he expects to see more players wearing the protective head covering in all situations; practices, tryouts and even games.

"I thought that was a huge step," Naylor said. "The NFL is the top football league in the world and if you’re going to see a trickle down effect to other levels of football, I think it would logically start at the NFL level."

Saint Mary's University football players, Isaiah Oakley, and Liam Macdonald. (CTV News)

Saint Mary’s University football player Isaiah Okoli is open to the notion of wearing it someday in a game.

"I grew up playing with just a hard plastic," Okoli said. "But I can definitely see them being an everyday thing."

Okoli also said he thought Guardian Caps were "funny looking" when he first saw them. Now he said he changed his opinion. If they help prevent head injuries, Okoli is more than happy to wear them, regardless of their appearance.