Bill Belichick didn’t know if Julian Edelman was checked for concussion

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick didn’t know if receiver Julian Edelman received a concussion evaluation after a brain-rattling hit in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLIX.

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was unsure whether wide receiver Julian Edelman got checked for a concussion after he took a brain-rattling helmet-on-helmet hit in the fourth quarter.

Belichick says he doesn't know if Edelman was checked for concussion. Says that is up to medical staff.
— Kent Somers (@kentsomers) February 2, 2015

Edelman was in fact checked and cleared – but only after six plays following the hit, the Associated Press reported. He was evaluated on the New England sideline by medical staff and an independent neurologist.

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The receiver was blasted by Seattle Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor with 11 minutes remaining in the Patriots’ 28-24 Super Bowl victory on Sunday night. Though Edelman’s knee was marked down, he proceeded to get up and stagger dazed and confused for an extra five yards.

He stayed in the game the rest of the series, which was topped off by a short touchdown pass to Danny Amendola.

Twitter was abuzz with comments concerning the likely head injury.

Edelman was unconscious those last 5 yards
— J.A. Adande (@jadande) February 2, 2015

Belichick explained the circumstances.

“I’m a coach and I had a deal with our trainers and doctors. They’re the medical experts and they don’t call plays, and I’m the coach and I don’t get involved in the medical part,” he said. “When they clear players to play, then if we want to play them, we play them. The plays we call, I don’t have to get approval from them. It’s a good setup.”

The situation reinforces raised questions about how much communication regarding the health of players happens on the sideline.

Based on NFL protocol, there is an “eye in the sky,” a certified athletic trainer who sits in a stadium box and closely watches the game and TV replays to scan for concussed players. But it didn’t take eagle eyes to determine that Edelman’s brain had been scrambled, though perhaps not severe enough to be ruled a concussion.

The decision to send a player-patient back in the game depends on the judgment of the team’s head physician, whose verdict is then confirmed by an independent neurological consultant.

Edelman, who ended up catching the game-winning 3-yard touchdown pass, led the team with 109 receiving yards on the day. But he did have few moments when he seemed apparently shaken. When talking to reporters after the game, Edelman referred to Seattle as “St. Louis” before correcting himself.

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