NFL And GPS Tracking

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

Teams in the NFL are really making strides these days to practice differently than the rest of the league in an attempt to set themselves apart through better performance. Not only are they incorporating different types of work out regiments, like Crossfit, to get their players into shape but they are also incorporating modern technology into their workouts as well.

Now, you may think they are only logging times played in games or on the practice field. And we are all aware of the normal statistics that the NFL tracks being big factors considered when players get their starting slots, but with the help of a few small GPS trackers installed in the players jerseys these teams are taking stats to a whole new level.

Catapult

Catapult Company, is the manufacturer of a small GPS tracking device that sports teams around the world are beginning to integrate, not only into their practices, but also in the actual games. A small device in inserted into a pocket that has been sewn into the player’s jersey, this device is used to measure all types of criteria to help measure output from the player as well as g-forces. 

The equipment managers and trainers for these teams will gather a lot of extra information from the tracking devices that would be very difficult to gather any other way. They will be able to measure the exact amount of time on the field, practicing and playing. The intensity from the players while they are playing, through their speed and how many G’s they pull when stopping, starting and cornering (or cutting) across the field. Of course the amount of G’s that are created when a hit is laid on another player is also tracked. I can see this information being very important with the new concern of players and head injuries.

Preventing Injuries

As we mentioned the amount of head injuries has gone up a lot over the past few years in the NFL. Not only have the head injuries gone up but also have the amount of other injuries. Teams are hoping to use these tracking devices to help assess when a player has played too much, and may be in need of rest. These Catapult devices relay the necessary information to a server that takes it all in and then gives out a performance number for each player. These numbers range from 300 to 400 and are based on their activity, so the more they play and the faster they run, or hit, the higher the number. Team managers are taking these numbers and giving them to the coaching staff so that they may then decide if a player is approaching the point that they may be more easily injured. If a player has practiced and played at a level of 400 4 days in a row that may not be a good thing for his body, at this time they can pull a player from practice or they can make sure they are practicing at half speed to prevent injury. Essentially the teams are preserving players for game time and hopefully for many more years to come.

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