Patent ID: 7930773

Claim:
A football shoulder pad worn by a player, the shoulder pad comprising: a pair of continuous arch members joined together to define a central opening, each arch member having a front arch portion depending from an upper arch portion and a rear arch portion depending from the upper arch portion, wherein each arch member is a unitary piece that extends continuously over the player's shoulder and between the player's chest region and back region, wherein each arch member has a raised front segment extending downward from an upper portion of the arch member and along an extent of the front arch portion, the raised front segment being defined by opposed sidewalls that extend transversely from the front arch portion; a side pad assembly operably connected to each arch member to substantially overlie the player's shoulder region, the side pad assembly comprising an epaulet and a shoulder cap, wherein the shoulder cap resides external to the arch member and the epaulet resides above and against the shoulder cap; and, an internal padding assembly removably connected to and extending along each arch member.