Rams throw concussion protocol out window with QB Case Keenum

St Louis Rams playmaker Case Keenum was tackled in the late stages of the game against the Ravens and hit his head heavily on the ground.

-SPECIAL TEAMS: D. The failures were a 52-yard missed field-goal attempt that would have given the Rams a 16-13 lead with 1:46 left in the game, plus a blocked extra point and that allowed the Ravens to tie the game in the fourth quarter with a touchdown, extra point and field goal.

More than two dozen medical staffers are supposed to keep an eye on players during games, including an independent spotter in the press box who has the power to stop the action because of an injury. Keenum was visibly shaken, immediately grabbing his head before struggling to get to his feet. It’s disturbing to even watch.

St. Louis Rams QB Case Keenum suffered an (extremely obvious) concussion during yesterday’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

George Atallah, the NFLPA assistant executive director of external affairs, confirmed Monday the NFLPA is reviewing the concussion protocol in the Keenum incident. He was later ruled out for the game.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, a Rams official told the media 25 minutes after the game that Keenum couldn’t speak with the media because he had suffered a concussion.

The sad truth here is that the team trainer actually robbed a visually distressed Keenum of the chance to get assessed and treated properly. The shots that you’ve seen where he got up slow, that we’ve seen out there, I didn’t see that. You will also see Foles on the sideline, clearly getting ready to go into the game. Keenum was sacked on the play, and Ravens linebacker Elvis Dumervil was penalized for being in the neutral zone.

It was recovered by defensive end Lawrence Guy at the St Louis 41 to set up the 47-yard, game-winning field goal by Justin Tucker as time expired to give Baltimore the 16-13 win over St. Louis. It was an irresponsible and wreckless decision on every level, and the Rams should absolutely face discipline from the National Football League; and harsh discipline at that.

The National Football League loves to point to the fact that the number of reported concussions are dropping year-to-year, a sign that their well-publicized efforts to make the sport safer are working. What Ditka said wasn’t an overstatement.

The spotter, Fisher said, didn’t intervene Sunday because Rams head trainer Reggie Scott was on the field. He said the team has made progress on that front and that they wouldn’t hold tryouts because they felt comfortable with what they know about the available options. “When he swings the way he’s supposed to, when he swings the way he’s capable of, the fundamentally correct way to do it as he does in practice 99 times out of 100, he hits a straight ball and he hits a really good ball”. Asked if he considered taking Keenum out of the game, Fisher said no. A moment later, Fisher was asked what his offense needs to do to improve, and he didn’t sound like someone who had a quarterback about to enter the concussion protocol.

“Everybody out there can talk about how he can’t – those who want to consider themselves amateur evaluators – they can say what they want”. And then our head trainer was instructed to leave the field by the officiating department. “He’s under contract and a big part of what we’re doing going forward”.

In the case of what happened in Baltimore, Fisher said, “You can not under these circumstances place blame on anybody”.