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PFATS Information

Frequently Asked Questions

What is PFATS and can I become a member?

The Professional Football Athletic Trainers Society (PFATS) is a professional association whose members are the athletic trainers of the National Football League. The members of PFATS provide and manage health care for NFL athletes, club employees and members of the NFL community.

Today, there are more than 100 PFATS members who meet the membership criteria of being professionally certified by the NATA and employed full-time (year round) as either a head or assistant athletic trainer by any of the 32 NFL franchises. This is in accordance with the most current NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement. Only people meeting these criteria may consider themselves PFATS members.

What is a certified athletic trainer?

According to the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA), a Certified Athletic Trainer is a highly educated and skilled professional specializing in athletic health care. In cooperation with physicians and other allied health personnel, the athletic trainer functions as an integral member of the athletic health care team in secondary schools, colleges and universities, sports medicine clinics, professional sports programs and other athletic health care settings. (Please refer to www.nata.org for more information.)

What does it take to become a certified athletic trainer?

Certified athletic trainers have, at minimum, a bachelor's degree, usually in athletic training, health, physical education or exercise science. In addition, athletic trainers study human anatomy and physiology, biomechanics, exercise physiology, athletic training, nutrition and psychology/counseling. Certified athletic trainers also participate in extensive clinical affiliations with athletic teams under appropriate supervision.

Certified athletic trainers have fulfilled the requirements for certification as established by the National Athletic Trainers' Association Board of Certification, Inc. (NATABOC). The certification examination administered by NATABOC consists of a written portion with multiple choice questions; a practical section that evaluates the skill components of the domains within athletic training and a written simulation test, consisting of athletic training related situations designed to approximate real-life decision making. This last portion of the test evaluates athletic trainers' ability to resolve cases similar to those they might encounter in actual practice.

The examination covers a variety of topics within the six practice domains of athletic training:

  • Prevention
  • Recognition, Evaluation and Assessment
  • Immediate Care
  • Treatment, Rehabilitation and Reconditioning
  • Organization and Administration
  • Professional Development and Responsibility

Once athletic trainers pass the certification examination proving skills and knowledge within each of the six domains, they use the designation "ATC."

What is a PFATS’ member’s exact role in the NFL?

As each team’s primary health care provider, the main objective of every PFATS member is to provide their athletes with the best medical care possible. Although ensuring the health and safety of their players is their number one priority, PFATS members may also:

  • Work with physicians, coaches, club administrators and media relations staff
  • Oversee athlete’s physical therapy and rehabilitation programs
  • Testify at arbitrations and grievances as required by NFL Collective Bargaining agreements
  • Prepare team itineraries and post daily practice and travel schedules
  • Communicate with NFL drug program agents and counselors regarding player testing
  • Coordinate sport psychologist’s schedule
  • Review food menus for the team’s home, away and in-flight meals
  • Meet with the team’s strength and conditioning coordinator
  • Work with the video director regarding on-going video log of injuries
  • Meet with equipment staff concerning injury modifications and other special needs
  • Review training room and equipment budgets
  • Evaluate and rate NFL Free Agency and NFL Draft medical reports
  • Produce year-end medical ratings for all players
  • Review playbook information regarding team rules and regulations, fine schedules, medical policies, etc.
  • Communicate with other NFL athletic trainers regarding free agents, trades, injuries, results from the NFL Combine, etc.
  • Participate in the NFL prescription drug audit
  • Coordinate skin cancer screenings for players and staff

Does PFATS offer any type of scholarship program?

PFATS is involved in two scholarship programs; the PFATS-NFL Charities Minority Scholarship program and the PFATS/NATA Scholarship series.

PFATS-NFL Charities Minority Scholarships

Since 1993, PFATS and NFL Charities have worked together to sponsor annual scholarships for ethnic minority students. The scholarship program is open to undergraduate and graduate ethnic minority athletic training students who possess a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.5 on a four-point scale. In addition to receiving a financial grant, each student selected will have the opportunity to work an NFL summer training camp.

Interested applicants should submit a cover letter, a curriculum vitae and a letter of recommendation from their supervising athletic trainer by March15 of each year to:

Britt Brown, ATC
Associate Athletic Trainer
Dallas Cowboys
One Cowboys Parkway
Irving, Texas 75063
(972) 556-9992
bbrown@dallascowboys.net

PFATS/NATA Scholarship Series

All collegiate student athletic trainers who are in their junior year or higher with a grade point average of at least 3.2/4.0 and who plan on pursuing a career as a certified athletic trainer are eligible to apply for one of these $2,000 scholarships. Application forms may be found at www.nata.org and are due by February of each year.

Do certified athletic trainers in the NFL travel with their teams?

Yes, athletes get injured on the road as well as in their home stadiums.

How do I get a job as an athletic trainer in the NFL?

Many head athletic trainers prefer to promote from within, so the first step in gaining full-time employment as an athletic trainer in the NFL is usually to purse an internship with an NFL team. Most teams have internships of various lengths, some just for training camp, while others may be for the duration of the season or even last the entire calendar year.

Each team’s application procedures may be different, so contacting the head athletic trainer of each team you want to apply to is the best thing to do. Most teams will require a signed letter of application, a resume and a letter of recommendation from the student’s head athletic trainer.  Applications are generally accepted at the end of the season through April 1st of each year.

How much do NFL athletic trainers get paid?

Pay for full time athletic trainers in the NFL varies widely depending on years of experience and responsibilities, but current salaries for PFATS members range anywhere from $30,000 to over $100,000 per year.

What do you do in the off season?

Although the "off season" used to begin after each team’s last game, the NFL has become a year around business and there really isn’t an off season any more. In fact, most PFATS members now refer to the former off season as the "non-season." The athletic trainer’s work doesn’t end just because there are no more games. Instead, the focus shifts to preparing for the next season. During the spring and summer months, that involves:

  • Continuing rehabilitation programs from prior season’s injuries
  • Scheduling off season surgeries and rehabilitation programs
  • Preparing for and attending the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis
  • Preparing budgets, managing inventory and ordering supplies
  • Attending sports medicine seminars to earn continuing education credits as required for certification by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA)
  • Providing medical coverage for off season weight workouts and on field mini camps
  • Evaluating staff needs and selecting summer/seasonal interns
  • Fitting in vacation and time with family and friends

How many hours per week do you work?

That depends on the time of the year. Members put in 14 hour days (or more) during training camp and about 10 hours per day during the regular season. Of course, that doesn’t include the time involved in the approximately 10+ weekends of travel to away games. In the off, or non-season, the schedule tends to normalize and they work about 40 hours a week.

What is the NFL Combine and do PFATS members participate in it?

The NFL Combine, held each year in Indianapolis, is an annual event designed to give NFL team representatives (i.e., coaches, scouts, personnel and team medical staffs) the opportunity to evaluate players. Two scouting organizations invite approximately 300 of the top college football players to participate in a series of interviews, physical endurance and medical exams and football specific performance workouts.

PFATS members participate in:

  • Coordinating medical history and conducting one-on-one history interviews
  • Arranging radiological tests including x-rays, MRIs and CT scans
  • Scheduling medical exams including vision, hearing and internal exams
  • Assisting in the logistics of collecting laboratory data, EKG’s and stress tests
  • Working with team orthopedists as they examine athletes
  • Collecting and recording the large amount of medical information gathered during the four day process

In addition to these medical duties, PFATS members:

  • Hold their annual day long winter business meeting
  • Attend NFL update meetings
  • Participate in both the PFATS and NFL Physicians Society sponsored continuing education sports medicine seminars

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