<P> By the 1950s, the introduction of polymers ended the leather helmet era . The last leather helmet manufacturer, MacGregor, ceased production of leather helmets in the mid-1960s . The NFL also recommended face masks for players in 1955, reducing the number of broken noses and teeth, but also necessitating new rules prohibiting opposing players from grabbing the face mask . By varying accounts, either Pat Studstill or Garo Yepremian was the last to forgo the facemask; among non-kickers, Tommy McDonald was the last to do so . </P> <P> According to Andrew Tucker, football helmets adequately protected players from catastrophic brain injuries, but helmet manufacturers were motivated to design helmets that decrease the risk of concussions . Vin Ferrara, () a former Harvard quarterback, accidentally discovered a new way to cushion football helmets . One night, Ferrara was looking for an aspirin when he saw a squirt bottle in his medicine cabinet . As he pumped it and then punched it, he realized that the bottle withstood the blows of different forces . Ferrara immediately came up with the idea to encase football helmets with a number of inflatable pockets in order to cushion the blows a football player receives and reduce concussions . </P> <P> More recently, in 2003 Schutt sports introduced their football helmets which contained TPU, or thermoplastic urethane . They would argue that this helps cushion the head more than any other helmet in the market . Schutt also believes that TPU makes the helmet less prone to mold and easier overall to clean and keep sanitary . </P> <P> A more recent addition to the football helmet is the visor or eye shield, which is affixed to the face mask to protect players from glare or eye injuries, such as pokes . It is believed that the first player to use a protective visor Mark Mullaney of the NFL's Minnesota Vikings in 1984, in order to protect a healing eye injury . Top manufacturers of visors are Nike, Oakley, and Under Armour, with Leader being the first to come out with a visor / shield for former Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon (who needed the visor because of a childhood eye injury). While Mullaney and McMahon's visors were tinted, most of the earlier visors were clear or smoked, but they are now offered in a variety of styles ranging from blue, gold, black, rainbow, silver, or amber . High - school and pee - wee leagues prohibit all but clear visors . This rule was enacted so that training staff and coaches can easily view a player's face and eyes in the case of a serious injury, to discern if the player is conscious . The NCAA banned the use of tinted visors for the same reason, and the NFL has followed suit as well . However, players with eye problems may still obtain special permission to wear tinted visors, some notable examples being LaDainian Tomlinson and Chris Canty . </P>

When was the first helmet used in football