Seattle-based startup Vicis' "breakthrough" football helmet, designed in an effort to reduce head trauma, will get a tryout this season in the NFL, according to Inc.com.

The Zero1 helmet — officially approved late last year by the national committee that judges equipment safety, paving the way for its use in the NFL and NCAA — features an impact-absorbing core covered in a pliable outer layer, all to cushion the player's head from violent, potentially concussion-inducing impact.

Not inconsequential: The helmets look like the ones it would replace, most made by Riddell and Schutt.

Here's how Vicis describes the Zero1:

"The Zero1's multiple layers work together to slow impact forces. The helmet features a soft outer shell and an underlying layer of columns designed to mitigate collisions from multiple directions.

"The Zero1 delivers breakthroughs in safety based on current, state of the art testing protocols. It also elevates performance, featuring the industry's widest ﬁeld of peripheral view and low aerodynamic drag. Our tagline is Protect the Athlete/Elevate the Game™ – and that's what we've done with the Zero1."

Vicis tells Inc.com that 25 NFL teams and at least 20 NCAA teams will use the helmets in 2017 despite the $1,500 price tag.

Here's why: At a time of heightened awareness surrounding head trauma, football and CTE, the NFL last week released results of its annual lab test of helmets. According to Inc.com, Zero1 finished first, ahead of 23 helmets from Riddell and Schutt, who together account for 90 percent of all football helmet sales.

It's worth noting, Inc.com writes, that hometown Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman is on the company's advisory board, as are Doug Baldwin and Alex Smith, as well as Hall of Famers Jerry Rice and Roger Staubach.