Patriots Unveil New Uniforms

[Gothamite]

19 hours ago, Unwind said:

I know this isn't the Concepts forum, but it really upsets me that we could've had this, and don't. (I know that there's no true Color Rush option here, but you get the point. Add some red pants.)

 

Hmm - every change you made to the home jersey is a significant downgrade.
 

I applaud your silver pants, but other than that they’re better off with what they have. 

[PaleVermilion81]

33 minutes ago, DNAsports said:

Didn’t the Titans reduce the number size on the columbia blue jerseys after one year?

 

They made the number slightly thicker, and it was due to legibility. 

 

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2019/03/27/titans-will-have-bigger-numbers-on-light-blue-jerseys/

[logoman]

https://imgur.com/a/46Wm3Dv

[Digby]

18 hours ago, DNAsports said:

 

We kinda figured this, right?

 

The Patriots didn't shy away from the 80s era throwbacks back when alternate helmets were allowed. They used both the white and the red jerseys even. They (correctly!) just never beat you over the head with it the way some teams do with their throwbacks.

[Sport]

15 hours ago, Brian in Boston said:

While I liked what the Patriots were attempting to do with those 1993 uniform pants, they and the folks at Apex came up short.

Obviously, the striping pattern on the pants is inspired by the "Flying Elvis" mark. That said, it doesn't truly succeed at capturing the flowing, flag-like feel of the stripes in said logo. Rather than the red lines on the pants slightly curving as though they're stripes on a windblown flag, they're rendered as rigid triangles. Further, there are three red stripes on the pants, as opposed to the two in the logo. The pants stripes would have better reflected the "Flying Elvis" if there had been one red stripe that ran to the very end of the pants leg, a second red stripe that was slightly shorter, and a single blue stripe that was shorter still.

If the Patriots and Nike were to ever try and revisit that design experiment, they'd be well served to have the striping start as a solid navy block of color at the hip of the pants on each leg. They might even opt to add a white star within said block just below the waistband. As the navy coloring separated into three distinct stripes on its way down the leg, it would give way to a pair of red stripes that would gently - and slightly - curve away from the front of the thigh and the knee. The forward-most of these two red stripes would eventually run the full length of the pants leg, with the red stripe just behind it running a bit shorter in length. The third blue stripe, positioned towards the rear of the leg, would be the shortest on the pants leg and might run to no lower than mid-thigh. 

It's simply a matter of printing the striping pattern one wants - in this case, something truly reflective of a specific portion of the "Flying Elvis" mark - onto a piece of Nike's proprietary fabric and inserting it into/affixing it to a pair of pants. Again, if the Patriots and their uniform partner are going to go to all of that trouble, they should nail the details... not just half-ass it.

 

I think the original 1993 pants stripe was too clever by half. The uniform was at its peak in 1994 when they showed some restraint, went to the double stripe on the pants and kept the jersey simple and lost the red numbers on the blue jerseys. A year later they went full 90's and stretched Elvis over the shoulders, drop shadowed Nascar number font, and the sublimated vertical stripes. It was that uniform taken to the maximum. 

 

 

The white jersey was very basic, but I love the shoulder numbers contrasting with the big numbers on the front and back. 

 

[RedSox44]

The contrasting TV numbers are my biggest qualm with the 1993 set, personally. Makes it look like a K-Mart knockoff.

[See Red]

The contrasting numbers on the shoulders of the above uniforms would look great if they were outlined in red.  As it is, they look cheap or like an afterthought.

[hugevolsfan]

1 hour ago, Digby said:

 

Give me navy pants with the white jersey and the old number font (but still one-layer!), and these are just about perfect. 

 

I get why the color-swap instinct made the white jersey's shoulder stripes the way that they are ... but if you stop to think about it design-wise for 5 seconds, this ^ treatment makes so much more sense. And the heavy use of navy elsewhere in the jersey ensures that the standard Patriots color balance stays intact.

Silver pants need blue though or they feel disconnected to me

[Gothamite]

35 minutes ago, logoman said:

https://imgur.com/a/46Wm3Dv

 

Better pants, worse jerseys.

[See Red]

15 hours ago, hawk36 said:

Simple, consistent, clean. This is what the final tweak in the Patriots' design process could've been (modified from the Survival79 graphic)...

 

 

These look worse to me.  Outside of no gray pants, I think the actual blue uniforms actually look really good and this is a downgrade.  If one of the big complaints I saw around here was the uniforms look boring or generic -- this only makes them more boring.  Second, the Patriots were in a position where their uniforms were very dated but had been worn during the most dominant stretch in the history of the league.  So in my opinion, they needed to update/change their uniforms without making them a total departure from the uniforms they were most successful in.  Keeping the number outlines accomplishes that for the most part (it helps they've worn the blue jersey, or something very close to it in Super Bowl seasons).  This concept, outside of the helmet, doesn't do that.

 

The whites here scream Ole Miss, even with blue numbers instead of red.

[WSU151]

23 minutes ago, Sport said:

 

 

I've seen a lot of photos from the '94 Pats over the years, but never this one. Cool photo, great lighting thanks to the cloudy Buffalo weather.

 

I really liked the '93 set, but I liked the '94 set more...but I probably change my mind on which Pats 90s set was better way too often.

 

edit: And I still think the Pats have to do a royal blue throwback (whether it be '93, 94, or '95-99) one of these days - the royal is too good not to use for a game or too. Maybe if the one-helmet rule does not change they'll think about it.

[8BW14]

15 hours ago, hawk36 said:

Simple, consistent, clean. This is what the final tweak in the Patriots' design process could've been (modified from the Survival79 graphic)...

 

Swap the pants and I’m in. I don’t think you need outlines on the numbers but I think keeping the double outline might help tie the whole thing together. I love the way the stripes reflect the logo without being too on the nose. IMO, this is far better than what the Patriots actually went with.

[Sport]

15 hours ago, hawk36 said:

Simple, consistent, clean. This is what the final tweak in the Patriots' design process could've been (modified from the Survival79 graphic)...

 

 

This is the best that template can look and carrying the red-white-red stripe throughout shows an actual design decision purposely being made - it makes the stripes on the blue jersey make sense rather than just "it was a template the league had". Gives them context, tells a story.

 

Only change I'd make - numbers on the sleeves instead of the logo.

[Froob]

Watched the 2009 bills Pats opener last night, how did the Pats pick the silver alt over the throwbacks for so many years?

[oldschoolvikings]

Well, as long as other people are tossing out the Patriot fixes...

 

[hawk36]

1 hour ago, Sport said:

 

This is the best that template can look and carrying the red-white-red stripe throughout shows an actual design decision purposely being made - it makes the stripes on the blue jersey make sense rather than just "it was a template the league had". Gives them context, tells a story.

I wish more designers were allowed to do this with the uniforms (tell a story, build the brand). My guess is most want to but their ideas are committeed out of the final designs. Unfortunately whomever is making the decisions typically opts for trendy, clutter, rather than substance. 

[schultzcore]

Wow.

 

"Pats Unveil New Uni Set with Wrong Pants!"

 

https://uni-watch.com/2020/04/21/exclusive-pats-unveil-new-uni-set-with-wrong-pants/

[The_Admiral]

13 minutes ago, schultzcore said:

https://uni-watch.com/2020/04/21/exclusive-pats-unveil-new-uni-set-with-wrong-pants/

 

Quote

Current NFL uniform regs require TV numbers, so the Pats presumably got a waiver. I’ve asked the team about this as well and will report back if they respond.

 

PAUL LUKAS: I couldn't help but notice that your updated Color, ahem, Rash jerseys omit the TV numbers as stipulated by the NFL rulebook. Can you explain why you were allowed to violate this rule?
SOULLESS PATRIOTS MEDIA RELATIONS GUY: We're looking forward to the 2020 season.

PAUL LUKAS: But don't you see an issue with a diminished ability to identify pl--

SOULLESS PATRIOTS MEDIA RELATIONS GUY: We're looking forward to the 2020 season.
PAUL LUKAS: I just don't see, if you'll pardon the expression, how you would be abl--

SOULLESS PATRIOTS MEDIA RELATIONS GUY: We're looking forward to the 2020 season.

[Audiodrama]

7 hours ago, Gothamite said:

Hmm - every change you made to the home jersey is a significant downgrade.
 

I applaud your silver pants, but other than that they’re better off with what they have. 

 

Versus the one they unveiled? I respectfully disagree. I personally would have stayed with their previous set, for the record, though.

[fouhy12]

I haven't weighed in on the new uniforms yet, been waiting to really think my opinions through. This is basically the first time in my lifetime that any of my favorite teams have made a significant change to their branding. 

 

My opinions on the previous uniforms: They'll always be associated with arguable the strongest 20-year run in NFL history, and as a fan, that obviously clouds my judgement. However, I'm generally a pretty big fan of the previous set. The home uniform was a classic. With the exception of the side piping, there really wasn't a flaw in my opinion. The colors were balanced very well throughout, and I loved the combination of navy and silver with red as an accent. It also combined white and silver in the same palette in a way that looks good, which is something that can be difficult to do when balancing them with two other strong colors. The number font was traditional but distinctive. The road uniform is a little worse. I love white striped socks, but the ones found on this uniform made little sense and were a holdover from when Adidas was the manufacturer. The side panels don't look good, but they look better here than on many other uniforms of the same vintage. The stripes on the pants are boring, and silver is only found on the helmet. The color balance is not optimal, but the overall look is still a good one. 

 

The new uniforms:

 

Helmet: The helmet is unchanged, and I'm very happy about this. The silver shell used by the team is fantastic, and the red facemask is distinctive. While a polarizing feature, it's always been one of my favorite parts of the uniform.

 

Jerseys: I like the move to the UCLA-style stripes. They have a long history in New England's uniforms, and this striping with the modern colors is a nice medium between the older brands and the modern one. The lack of numbers on the sleeve caps in favor of the Flying Elvis irritates me, but that's a minor flaw. Red as the prominent color in the stripes works well with the the facemask, and the bright red contrasts nicely with the navy jersey. Red/navy/red also looks good on the white jersey. As someone with experience in broadcasting, I dislike an aspect of the uniform meant to make the lives of fans and broadcasters easier being stripped from the uniform, but aesthetically there is little difference. The logo does look good there, although it's repetitive with the logo on the helmet. I'm glad they kept the double outline with the numbers. I've always like the look of white outlined by grey and red. Replacing the white outline with a grey one on the white jersey was a good move for color balance and consistency, and it's one that should've been made for the white jerseys of the original set. I don't agree with the change in font, and I think the previous one was very strong. However, the new one is inoffensive and I have no real issue with it. The jerseys are very strong in my opinion.

 

Pants: This is where things begin to fall apart. The positive: it appears the pants used at the unveiling were wrong and the actual pants fixed the stripe to match the one on the shoulders. I'm not usually a fan of monochrome, but the navy over navy does look good to me. The matching stripes make it work, and the helmet actually works pretty well with them. However, this set desperately needs a silver set to match. These silver pants should be worn for most of the home games, with the all-navy look being reserved for a few games per season. White over navy should be the primary look on the road, and the silver pants can be used occasionally here as well.

 

Socks: I really like the new navy socks. The red stripe at the bottom is a really nice touch. But there should be a white pair to be worn on the road with the navy pants. Just take the red/navy/red stripe from the jersey, throw it on a white sock, and call it a day. 

 

Overall ratings: 

Previous home uniform - 8/10. A modern classic with a few flaws.

Previous road uniform - 7/10. A slightly worse version of the home uniform.

Home uniform - 7/10. A fine uniform that needs additional pant options.

Road uniform - 4/10. Far too bottom heavy, with silver and white on top and all navy below the belt. Needs additional sock option.

 

My fixes here: