On Sunday in Houston, Bills quarterback Josh Allen hit the ground hard and hit his head on the turf in the fourth quarter. After the game, Allen told reporters that he had rolled his ankle and that while being examined in the medical tent he was told he also needed to be evaluated for a concussion.

That was him. And he was allowed to return.

He missed a punt, four offensive plays by the Texans and one offensive play by the Bills.

The injury happened with 6:06 left in the fourth quarter. Allen returned with 3:36 to play. That’s a missed playing time of two and a half minutes. And as we measured on the CBS broadcast, he missed six minutes and six seconds of actual time from the moment his head hit the ground to the moment he returned to the field.

It is unclear when the concussion evaluation began and whether Allen’s version of the series of events is accurate. The NFL nevertheless activated the review process and cleared him.

The NFL’s doctors, both team and non-affiliated, make the decision. The protocol has been developed and honed in the 15 years (to the month) since Congress called NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and former NFL Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith to Capitol Hill for testimony about their collective treatment (and/ or incorrect treatment) of brain trauma. .

Whether it takes two and a half minutes of game time (or six minutes and six seconds of real time) to eliminate a player doesn’t matter. Whether it’s one total game, five total games or fifty total games is irrelevant. The process, as developed and used by the NFL, governs the process by which players are cleared to return to play.

On Sunday, Allen needed two and a half minutes of playing time, six minutes and six seconds of real time, a punt, four defensive plays and one offensive play to return.