Is the current Denver Broncos uniform/logo a "classic"?

[Gothamite]

The Broncos feel to me like the Brewers now. A modern-ish design, with custom numbers that are solid but not too out there, and lingering much longer than they should out of some bizarre inertia.

Neither team is the worst in its league, but is far from the best.

[Lights Out]

The logo is okay.

The uniforms have become really boring and old-hat, especially considering how many college programs ended up using that same exact template. They could definitely use a change.

I don't buy the "they're tired" argument. Everyone copying them wasn't their fault. They were the originators of the design, and thus I feel they should be spared from the criticisms of its overuse.

I know it's not the Broncos' fault, but fair or not, seeing that exact same template on a million teams has spoiled the look, IMO. It was revolutionary when the Broncos first started wearing it, but it's been run into the ground now and lost its uniqueness.

[Xist2inspire]

As one of the few teams to try out a "modern" design element and actually take the time to make it work, I'd say yes.

Lemme see...

classic (ˈkla·sik/)

(adj) judged over a period of time to be of the highest quality and outstanding of its kind.

So...classic? Oh, HELL no. Nyet. Nu. Uh-uh. Naw. Nothing about this is classic. It's not even a modern classic. It's not an anything classic.

Well, that depends on what you determine as "its kind." In terms of teams with "modern" elements, it's definitely the among the best of its kind. Honestly, if a team came to me and said, "We want to redesign our uniforms with a modern feel, what's your opinion?" I'd say, "Either do it like the Broncos or don't do it at all." The Broncos are one of the few teams these days that you can look at as an example of how to bring in different ideas and styles while still looking presentable and respectable.

[MellowTheMyth]

Seeing that I grew up with these uniforms, this answer might be biased. But considering the success they've had in them, then I guess they're classic. Compared to other modern designs, this came out pretty sharp. Besides, if Denver were to change, I fear that they would be given some garbage & everyone would complain like hell.

[eliasrappaport]

I feel like the Eagles started that trend more so in 1996. Our template became more widely used imo.

[IceCap]

The Eagles' template is very traditional. The Broncos started the trend of contrasting panels and side stripes continuing to the pants that dominated football aesthetics from the late 90s-late 2000s.

[BBM]

I think the navy blue jerseys are much more of a "modern classic" look than the orange. The orange feels too much like a fashion jersey, something that doesn't really coordinate well with the navy blue in the helmet and socks. They either need a rustier orange or a lighter blue.

[wonderbread]

I feel like the Eagles started that trend more so in 1996. Our template became more widely used imo.

You mean a solid jersey with alternate colored cuffs and collar? That is not modern at all, it is the most simple uniform ever conceived

[WSU151]

I was just thinking last night how well the font has held up and how great the logo looked with the NBC logo treatment. Both NFL changes that year (the Bucs and the Broncos) were top notch.

No mention of the Dolphins' change, or Steelers number font change that year?

By the way, to the OP, the Broncos' current set debuted in 1997, not 1996.

[WSU151]

Since John Elway retired, the Broncos eventually introduced the navy pants somewhere in the mid-2000s. Of course we know the story that Elway hated the all-navy combo that the team wore exclusively white pants during the final two years of Elway's career until the early 2000s. Now that Elway's back (as team executive), will they ditch the navy pants for good and resume wearing their alternate navy jersey with the white pants? I'm sure he never liked the all-navy look.

They wore the all navy quite a bit in 2011 (Elway's first year as executive).

[MarkAtnip]

I attend only a few games per year, however because of travel, they are generally different teams in different cities, and in no other stadium do I see more throwback jerseys than in Denver. Elway, Little, Gradishar, Atwater, Davis, Mecklenburg etc... are absolutely EVERYWHERE.

This gives a lot of weight to the argument that at least the newer uniform/jersey is not classic, as I dare say that the majority of Broncos fans prefer the Orange Crush version. Perhaps the orange version of the modern jersey is a bit more acceptable to the fans in general, but orange definitely is the way to go.

There are also (again, just my observation) a larger number of merch items depicting the old logo than I see in other cities. My guess would be in the 30-35% vintage range. That's quite high compared to a lot of other towns.

Personally I have never worn a "new" uniform jersey to a game. Everything is from the Orange Crush era or a throwback.

[Billy B]

No, not classic. I'm ok with their current set, although it will always be inferior to the previous set. I dislike the current set largely because of the horrible designs it spawned. The uniform world would be better off today had the Broncos said ,"nah, it's not the uniforms that are keeping us from a championship. No thanks, Nike."

That being said, the navy jerseys with white pants were much better as the primary. I also wanted the Broncos to switch to orange a few years back, but after seeing them regularly, they aren't nearly as good as the navy jerseys. It's the same issues as with the Panthers' alternates. The loud, bright color works excellently as an accent, but when made the primary color, it's just too much. It also makes the color look washed out. Look at how much the orange popped off the navy set- compared to the orange jersey where the navy is just kinda there. The dark jerseys are more bold in both cases.

I feel the same way about the orange jersey. Kind of like the Titans, when navy was the primary I was hoping they'd change to the lighter color. Once that change actually happened, I realized how much better they looked in navy. I like the idea of the Broncos being an orange team (even though they've been navy from when I remember starting to watch football until last year) but it doesn't work that well with this set. This uniform set was designed to have navy as the primary and IMO you can really tell that when you see them wear orange every game.

[BBTV]

I feel like the Eagles started that trend more so in 1996. Our template became more widely used imo.

The eagles used the exact same template as their pre '96 jerseys, and the exact template used by (at the time) most of the league. The only thing "modern" about their initial new uniforms was the use of a custom font, the wordmark under the collar, and an aggressive logo. The rest was very traditional. They're a little more contemporary after the 2003 redesign though, but still on the most traditional template out there.

[Gothamite]

I attend only a few games per year, however because of travel, they are generally different teams in different cities, and in no other stadium do I see more throwback jerseys than in Denver. Elway, Little, Gradishar, Atwater, Davis, Mecklenburg etc... are absolutely EVERYWHERE.

That's an excellent point.

And you raise another - how "classic" could the uniform be if they're swapping primary and secondary jerseys? That speaks to something being wrong with the set as intended.

[Sec19Row53]

I've read many articles that claim that the logo/uniforms are "dated". But in your opinion, is the current Denver Broncos uniform/logo now historic/classic enough to where anything but minor tweaks would upset the Denver Broncos fanbase and/or uniform fanatics?

I think so. Here are a few reasons why:

• Started the "modern" uniform trend in 1996
• Is now 17 years old
• Is relatively modest compared to current "modern" uniforms
• Broncos won all Super Bowls in these uniforms
• Last uniform worn by some all-time Bronco greats (Terrell Davis, John Elway, Shannon Sharpe)
• Jason Elam set the longest FG record in these uniforms
• Peyton Manning tied the passing TD in a single game record in these uniforms

Some image links:

http://cdn.fansided.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/46/files/2013/06/davis_terrell.jpg

http://www.dgpics.com/images/Sport/ELWAY%20TD-TROPHY.jpg

http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2011/0802/nfl_g_sharpe11_576.jpg

http://blogs.denverpost.com/broncos/files/2010/03/elam4.jpg

• Started the "modern" uniform trend in 1996 - given how the modern trend has gone, that isn't a good thing.
• Is now 17 years old - the Cowboys' clusterfudge is how old? I don't see how the age is material in this case
• Is relatively modest compared to current "modern" uniforms - similar to being the tallest Munchkin in Oz
• Broncos won all Super Bowls in these uniforms - neither of which was won while being in compliance with the salary cap, so they also have that going for them
• Last uniform worn by some all-time Bronco greats (Terrell Davis, John Elway, Shannon Sharpe) - so the Buccaneers could never have changed from their creamsicles because the Selmons and Doug Williams wore them?
• Jason Elam set the longest FG record in these uniforms - he tied it. Big deal.
• Peyton Manning tied the passing TD in a single game record in these uniforms - Again - big deal? The Vikings couldn't have changed from their 1969 unis under this logic, nor any of the other holders of this record.

Based on your reasons why, no, they are not modern classics.

[HedleyLamarr]

The logo is okay.

The uniforms have become really boring and old-hat, especially considering how many college programs ended up using that same exact template. They could definitely use a change.

I don't buy the "they're tired" argument. Everyone copying them wasn't their fault. They were the originators of the design, and thus I feel they should be spared from the criticisms of its overuse.

I know it's not the Broncos' fault, but fair or not, seeing that exact same template on a million teams has spoiled the look, IMO. It was revolutionary when the Broncos first started wearing it, but it's been run into the ground now and lost its uniqueness.

So what should the Broncos do?

Many seem to want them to go back to the "Orange Crush" look with an updated D logo....a trend that's starting to become rather dominant when a team's changing their look. How unique is that?

Not everything with a single color and block numbering looks good. The Broncos have a very solid look right now. If they were to revert back to a previously worn look, it would immediately look dated and would be boring.

[Red Wolf]

If the Broncos are going to insist on wearing orange, they need to do some sort of real uniform change. With the current uniforms, orange feels too much like a secondary color. The helmets are navy, the socks are navy, and the pants have way more navy than orange. I'm all for going with orange, but I just feel there needs to be some sort of change in the uniforms beyond swapping the primary jerseys with the alternates.

[TheOldRoman]

No, not classic. I'm ok with their current set, although it will always be inferior to the previous set. I dislike the current set largely because of the horrible designs it spawned. The uniform world would be better off today had the Broncos said ,"nah, it's not the uniforms that are keeping us from a championship. No thanks, Nike."

That being said, the navy jerseys with white pants were much better as the primary. I also wanted the Broncos to switch to orange a few years back, but after seeing them regularly, they aren't nearly as good as the navy jerseys. It's the same issues as with the Panthers' alternates. The loud, bright color works excellently as an accent, but when made the primary color, it's just too much. It also makes the color look washed out. Look at how much the orange popped off the navy set- compared to the orange jersey where the navy is just kinda there. The dark jerseys are more bold in both cases.

I feel the same way about the orange jersey. Kind of like the Titans, when navy was the primary I was hoping they'd change to the lighter color. Once that change actually happened, I realized how much better they looked in navy. I like the idea of the Broncos being an orange team (even though they've been navy from when I remember starting to watch football until last year) but it doesn't work that well with this set. This uniform set was designed to have navy as the primary and IMO you can really tell that when you see them wear orange every game.

Definitely, I forgot about the Titans. I feel the same way about them - I wanted them to switch to light blue like in their Oilers days, but now that we see it every week, I want it changed back. Of course, they torpedo the look by pairing it with light blue pants or making it a monochrome. It would look loads better with white pants, but still, not as good as the original uniform.

[Gothamite]

So what should the Broncos do?

Many seem to want them to go back to the "Orange Crush" look with an updated D logo....a trend that's starting to become rather dominant when a team's changing their look. How unique is that?

Not everything with a single color and block numbering looks good. The Broncos have a very solid look right now. If they were to revert back to a previously worn look, it would immediately look dated and would be boring.

The Vikings have just disproved your hypothesis.

[habsfan1]

The logo could use a facelift, but those jersey are definitely classics! Hell, I wouldn't be surprised to see them live on for another 10 years.

The only dumb move was making the orange alts the full-time homes. I get it, but the jersey isn't nearly as good as the navy.