Josh Allen missed a total of five plays from scrimmage, or two and a half minutes of playing time, due to a concussion

In Houston on Sunday, Bills quarterback Josh Allen landed hard on the ground in the fourth quarter and hit his head on the turf. After the game, Allen told reporters that he twisted his ankle and that when he was examined in the medical tent, he was told that he also needed to be checked for a concussion.

He was. And he was allowed to return.

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

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

It is unclear when the concussion investigation began and whether Allen's version of the chain of events is correct. The NFL still activated the evaluation process and released him.

The decision will be made by NFL doctors, both team-employed and independent. The protocol has been developed and refined in the 15 years (to the month) since Congress summoned NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and former NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith to Capitol Hill to discuss their collective conduct (and/or or incorrect handling) to testify about 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 a total of one game, five games or fifty games is required does not matter. The process developed and used by the NFL controls the process of clearing players to return to play.

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