NFL asks Toyota to edit helmet-to-helmet hit out of ad [w/video]

Anyone who's managed to catch an NFL game or two this year is surely aware that the league is cracking down (with stiff fines and penalties) on the kinds of violent helmet-to-helmet hits that are likely to cause concussions to either the hitter of the hittee. And for good reason – the NFL and a number of independent organizations have found that such head injuries can be far more damaging over the long-term than once thought.

What does any of this have to do with automobiles? Glad you asked. Research into new helmet designs and technologies is currently underway, and, somewhat interestingly, Toyota has been able to provide data to some universities that's valuable for both automotive safety research and for sports-related head injuries using its T.H.U.M.S. (Total HUman Model for Safety) injury-simulation software.

Sounds pretty good so far, no? Indeed, Toyota was so pleased with its contributions to safety that it highlighted them in an advertisement that aired during the Sunday slate of NFL games. Sadly, there was one wee little problem... the commercial showed one particularly violent helmet-to-helmet hit – the exact same kind of injury-causing instance the NFL is doing its best to distance itself from.

Not surprisingly, the NFL asked Toyota to do a little creative editing on the commercial. In other words, take out the offending hit or we'll get our network partners to stop showing your advertisement. In the end, Reuters (via Yahoo) reports that Toyota begrudgingly obliged and altered its commercial appropriately. Score one for safety?

Check out the extended cut of the advertisement after the break.

[Source: Reuters via Yahoo]

The video meant to be presented here is no longer available. Sorry for the inconvenience.