Seattle-based helmet startup Vicis has invested three years and $20M into the Zero1 helmet, which features an outer shell it says "yields like a car bumper upon impact," according to Terez Paylor of the K.C. STAR. The Zero1 "ranked first out of 33 options -- including some provided by notable helmet makers Schutt and Riddell -- in laboratory testing" conducted jointly this year by the NFL and NFLPA. Chiefs QB Alex Smith was so "impressed with its technology that he became an initial investor after meeting with Vicis CEO Dave Marver last offseason." Chiefs C Mitch Morse, who uses the Zero1, said, "It’s pretty impressive." The Zero1 "sells for $1,500 -- or $500 to $1,000 more than traditional helmets." Washington and Oregon are "among the college programs using them." Smith "sits on Vicis’ advisory board," along with Seahawks WR Doug Baldwin and CB Richard Sherman, who will be "wearing their Zero1 helmets on Friday." Smith has found Vicis to be "responsive to players’ feedback" and so far that feedback has "been positive." Morse said, "Even for those subconcussive hits -- the repetitive ones -- it helps a ton. And in the long run, I think it will help with mental clarity throughout the season, and just overall feeling better." The helmet is "noticeably larger than its predecessors -- it’s said to offer the widest field of view of any helmet in the NFL -- and some players are turned off by its size." Smith said that Vicis is "working on that, too." Smith: "It's going to get smaller" (K.C. STAR, 8/25).
