Today’s health and safety news around football:

* In looking ahead to the top stories of 2013, the Toronto Globe and Mail wrote about how head injuries will still be a hot topic in all sports for the next 12 months.

Next year promises to bring further developments as researchers work to advance the field concussion science. Those findings are sure to influence what happens on the playing field, as parents, coaches and sport administrators struggle to make sports safer.

“We need to figure out more about how and why brain injuries happen, so we can protect our youth who are playing sports. And we want to make sure that they continue to play safely,” says Anne McKee, a researcher at Boston University who has led much of the research into the long-term consequences of repetitive hits to the head in sports. …

As it is, a small but growing number of schools boards are taking steps in concussion management by attempting to implement programs that help student athletes return to the classroom after suffering head injuries.

* Tight end Vernon Davis of the San Francisco 49ers suffered a concussion Sunday night against the Seattle Seahawks after being hit while trying to receive a pass, according to The Associated Press. The Seahawks were penalized on the play for hitting a defenseless receiver.

* NFL.com reported that Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles will miss Sunday’s finale against the New York Giants with a broken right throwing hand. He apparently broke the hand during the second quarter, but finished the game.

* Also, The AP reported that cornerback Jabari Greer of the New Orleans Saints sustained a concussion against the Dallas Cowboys.

* DeMarcus Ware is expected to play against the Washington Redskins despite a badly injured shoulder, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

* And the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Steelers tight end Heath Miller is done for the season after injury the ACL, MCL and the PCL in his right knee.

– Bill Bradley, contributing editor