NFL 2022 Changes

[Echo]

1 hour ago, BBTV said:

 

I thought I read at one time that one of the reasons the Bills went from white to red helmets was that all the other AFCE teams had white helmets and one of their QBs thought that there wasn't enough contrast when he was looking down the field.  I may also have just made that up.

 

That was Joe Ferguson with the Bills.  As it turned out, the helmets weren't the problem.

[MJD7]

16 hours ago, BBTV said:

 

I thought I read at one time that one of the reasons the Bills went from white to red helmets was that all the other AFCE teams had white helmets and one of their QBs thought that there wasn't enough contrast when he was looking down the field.  I may also have just made that up.

That's a big reason why I'd want the Bills to go back to the red helmet full-time (or at least as the primary, given the elimination of the one-helmet rule): it would help them stand out more in their division and the rest of the league. The Colts already have the white/blue/white combo locked down; of course, the Colts don't have any red, but I still like the Bills being able to distinguish themselves even more. There aren't enough red helmets in the league.

 

I like the Jets having a green helmet too, although I wish it was closer to kelly green.

[_RH_]

So we have a game between a red team and a green team.  A matchup where no team typically wears black helmets, jerseys, pants, or socks.  And what happens?   

Black hemets, jerseys, pants, and socks.  We end up with what, to me, is on top 10 list of all-time awful uni matchups.  The cardinals are dumb for doing a blackout (and they're about 20 years late to that trend) but they're at least the home team.  There is no reason Philly should be allowed to wear black in this game (or ever, but that's beside the point).

[OnWis97]

This is out of character for me but I think these Cardinals helmets are really sharp.

[DCarp1231]

53 minutes ago, OnWis97 said:

This is out of character for me but I think these Cardinals helmets are really sharp.

I’d argue the helmet finish is better off with the Falcons more than the Cardinals.

[gosioux76]

1 hour ago, OnWis97 said:

This is out of character for me but I think these Cardinals helmets are really sharp.

I had highlights on in the background this morning and it wasn't until I saw the final score that I realized the Falcons weren't playing. 

[OnWis97]

I agree that the shell would be better for the Falcons. That said, I think it looks really nice in a vacuum.

[ManillaToad]

Arizona looked like the Ghost of Falcons Past yesterday

[BBTV]

2 hours ago, OnWis97 said:

This is out of character for me but I think these Cardinals helmets are really sharp.

 

It looks nice on its own, but clashes with the flat black of the jersey.  You could really see the red flakes better than you could the teal ones when the Jags tried it a while back.

 

I'm not sure if using dazzle-fabric on the jerseys would help (or if maybe there's a way to weave some shiny red threads into the black material?) but I found the contrast to be distracting (as a uni nerd - not saying I was focused on it rather than the action on the field.)

[Ridleylash]

Falcons wearing the red throwback buckets this weekend;

 

[mafiaman]

On 10/10/2022 at 6:28 AM, _RH_ said:

So we have a game between a red team and a green team.  A matchup where no team typically wears black helmets, jerseys, pants, or socks.  And what happens?   

Black hemets, jerseys, pants, and socks.  We end up with what, to me, is on top 10 list of all-time awful uni matchups.  The cardinals are dumb for doing a blackout (and they're about 20 years late to that trend) but they're at least the home team.  There is no reason Philly should be allowed to wear black in this game (or ever, but that's beside the point).

I would think that if players actually saw themselves in tightie tight black pants and black socks (I’m talking about YOU, #90) that they would forever eschew the same color pants/socks look forever.  
 

Speaking of which, can’t wait to see the Bears in head-to-toe orange.  Gross.

[Echo]

2 hours ago, mafiaman said:

I would think that if players actually saw themselves in tightie tight black pants and black socks (I’m talking about YOU, #90) that they would forever eschew the same color pants/socks look forever.

 

I heard former Bills C Eric Wood on the pre-game last week talking about uniforms.  Basically the way he described it, the big guys on the team pretty much knew they looked terrible in most of the uni combos they were asked to wear, but were at the mercy of what the skill players thought were .

[Carolingian Steamroller]

16 minutes ago, Echo said:

 

I heard former Bills C Eric Wood on the pre-game last week talking about uniforms.  Basically the way he described it, the big guys on the team pretty much knew they looked terrible in most of the uni combos they were asked to wear, but were at the mercy of what the skill players thought were .

Seems about what you’d expect. 

[Carolingian Steamroller]

 

A follow up on the NFL of the past.

COLOR TV.

 

Television first started broadcasting in color in the USA in the early 1960's. By the first Super Bowl, all networks broadcast in color, though sales of color TV's would not surpass black and white until 1972.

 

Some of this is apparent in the uniforms and it's reason why we started seeing helmet logos, and in particular high contrast helmet logos, in the early 60's.

The most obvious example is the Rams who went from looking like this on TV:

 

To this:

But see also the all white "C" of the Chicago Bears, the NY on the Giants, the white horns on the Vikings, the Steelers one side only white circle, etc.

We should also bring up the nascent role of NFL Films which was just getting going under Ed Sabol in 1962 (cue Autumn Wind) and which presented bright, high quality color films of NFL games to the public. This was a time of huge expansion for pro-football into the market and maintaining recognizable brand identities was pushed by commissioner Pete Rozelle. See the role the League played in nearly convincing the Browns to adopt the CB monogram. 

 

 

So at a time when media had become decidedly more visual, and teams were being seen on a mass scale for the first time, there was a strong incentive to have as much distinction between teams as possible while creating established brand identities. For a lot of people, the first time they watched an NFL game was in the 1960's and its the first visual impression they got whether in color or black and white. Maybe some people thought of the Packers as wearing blue and yellow in the 40's and 50's but by 1966, you can bet green and gold were seared into everyone minds.

Since first impressions matter to an audience, take another look at that SI cover from 1965 and think about how for many of those teams, those helmets remain fixed as the "classic" design even today even though for most of them, those helmet were relatively new.

*Also look at how evenly spread out the color schemes are: 2 silver, 2 shades of gold, one orange, one green, one reddish, two white, two royal blue, one black, one navy, one purple.

 

 

[fouhy12]

Matthew Judon wore red socks while the rest of the Patriots wore the white ones with stripes this past Sunday. I think it looked pretty good. Would love to see those with a stripe that matches the jersey.

 

[joekono]

On 10/9/2022 at 10:53 AM, Carolingian Steamroller said:

 

So about that. 

 

Best can have different meanings depending on the context. For example, your best suit might be black but that's not going to the best look if you have to go to court. It will definitely look off if instead of going to court, you go camping. Similarly, context matters for uniforms.

 

Take for example the Los Angeles Chargers.

 

IMO their best look is the powder blue jersey over gold pants. I think its top 5 in all of football. We can debate that but this is my opinion.

 

However, would that pairing be ideal on a day the Green Bay Packers or Pittsburgh Steelers come to town? Those teams sole road uniforms look like this and this:

 

So on that occasion, to avoid an all yellow pants affair, the Chargers would be better off, and look better aesthetically, by wearing their white pants. Not their best look but the best for the situation:

 

 

An alternate or throwback can give a team the opportunity to wear something that fits the opponent a little better.

 

To give another example, I confess my own bias but I adore the Chicago Bears navy blue over white home uniform. A. D. O. R. E. it. I think its THE best in football. (Long standing, capital S, SUFFERING Bears fan that I am).

However, I admit that this:

 

 

Looked better than this:

 

 

Context matters and alternates make for opportunities. Teams don't always take proper advantage but at least the option is there.

No doubt the best uniforms in the league. Love this combo but also looks good with white pants. Same goes for the white jersey. The Color Rush and navy just get rid of.

[joekono]

On 10/10/2022 at 11:50 AM, ManillaToad said:

Arizona looked like the Ghost of Falcons Past yesterday

The last time I looked, the cardinal was a red bird so why they're not wearing red lids with those already hideous uniforms baffles me.

[LordBigMad]

On 10/9/2022 at 11:11 PM, MJD7 said:

That's a big reason why I'd want the Bills to go back to the red helmet full-time (or at least as the primary, given the elimination of the one-helmet rule): it would help them stand out more in their division and the rest of the league. The Colts already have the white/blue/white combo locked down; of course, the Colts don't have any red, but I still like the Bills being able to distinguish themselves even more. There aren't enough red helmets in the league.

 

I like the Jets having a green helmet too, although I wish it was closer to kelly green.

 

As long as the red helmet has the blue facemask.

[BJ Sands]

The Bears’ orange helmets are a big deal in Chicago. 

 

 

[Krona]

2 hours ago, BJ Sands said:

The Bears’ orange helmets are a big deal in Chicago. 

 

 

Not a lot that would save this helmet (seems completely unnecessary) but inverting the colors on the C would go a long way. That shade of orange works like a lighter color, which in my mind, signals to make the darker color the outline. If they wanted an orange helmet, they should of just really mixed in up and add stripes or put another logo on there altogether. It's like they wanted to stick to tradition in the most garish of ways.