Chargers must face the music about Joshua Palmer's concussion
By Jason Reed
The LA Chargers emerged victoriously over the Denver Broncos on primetime in Week 6. Leading the way for the team in receptions was Joshua Palmer, who otherwise has had a disappointing season thus far, especially with Keenan Allen out of the game.
On Wednesday, Palmer was added to the Chargers' injury report as he was put into concussion protocol. This raised some red flags around the Chargers, as there was no clear moment towards the end of the game in which Palmer seemed to be concussed.
Instead, Palmer banged his head on the first series of the game for the Chargers, eventually returning to play 81 snaps across all of regulation and overtime. Making matters worse is the fact that Palmer suffered a concussion earlier this year in the preseason, making it two in a two-month span for the second-year receiver.
So Joshua Palmer hit his head on the first series of the game on Monday night, left, presumably was tested for a concussion, came back in and played 81 snaps, and is now in the concussion protocol? https://t.co/LELhOb42uu
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) October 20, 2022
The Chargers must face the music on their decision to let Joshua Palmer play.
Concussions have been at the forefront of the NFL conversation for years now but especially this season in particular. The Miami Dolphins were heavily (and rightfully) criticized for how they handled Tua Tagovailoa's health, potentially putting the quarterback in more danger than he needed to be in.
This situation with Joshua Palmer is no different. It does not matter if you are playing a divisional rival in primetime and are already down offensive weapons and are playing a stout defense. There is absolutely no excuse for Palmer to come back in that game and play 81 snaps while being concussed.
The hope here is that it was pure negligence on the part of the medical staff and not ill-will from the coaching staff. Negligence you can fire and replace. Ill-will with the coaching staff is impossible to defend, especially if Brandon Staley had any kind of say in this matter.
Two concussions in one season is a very real thing and is something that we saw take most of Asante Samuel Jr's rookie season last year. It is more important than ever that the Chargers operate with extreme caution with Palmer moving forward, which even includes after next week's BYE.
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As they do that, they have to answer for what happened on Monday night and why one of their young players was put in unnecessary danger.