Donald Trump Calls NFL Concussion Rules Soft

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump took aim at the NFL's concussion protocol during a rally in Lakeland, Florida, on Wednesday.

According to CNN's Ashley Killough, Trump mocked the league's safety procedures after a woman in the crowd fainted:

The NFL has had a league-mandated concussion protocol since 2009, when it imposed rules that force teams to remove players who exhibit signs of concussions from the field.

Since then, the league has taken several steps to expand the protocol and make it more stringent.

Prior to the 2016 season, the NFL and NFL Players Association announced a joint agreement that included fines and possible draft-pick forfeitures for teams that do not properly enforce the concussion protocol.

In addition, the NFL employs independent certified athletic trainers to sit in the press box and watch games attentively for signs of possible concussions. NFL referees have also been instructed to remove players from games if they spot potential head injuries.

While the league has made positive strides with regard to the way it handles head injuries over the past few years, it has continued to fight a stigma that it hasn't done enough to protect players, as ESPN's Andrew Brandt noted:

Despite stricter guidelines, head injuries have continued to remain a major cause for concern.

Last season, the NFL reported a 32 percent rise in concussions after players suffered 271 of them during the 2015 campaign. That sharp spike came after the number of reported concussions dropped in both 2013 and 2014.