Best and Worst Matchups of the 2024 NFL Season 2024

[Rj0498]

Hey, I am not sure if anyone else plans on making one of these discussions but, these were probably my favorites to partake in so I will make one of my own  even if its a bit late. Week 2's slate of games are only two days away after all (not counting thursday's). These listings are in no particular order these are just what popped into my mind.

 

My Best  5

1) Chargers vs Raiders

No matter what era it is, Chargers vs Raiders is always going to look amazing and it definitely holds true today. It helps that the Chargers are wearing their yellow pants with the blue jerseys which is my favorite combo of theirs and pairs so well with the Raider's away unis.

 

 

2) Browns vs Cowboys

Another classic looking game. The Browns move to white facemasks bumps up their uniforms up a notch granted, I already thought they were awesome before then but, the white facemask helps out a bunch. And of course you can't go wrong with the Cowboys classic white jerseys. The colors of both teams just go together a lot better than you would think.

 

3) Jets vs 49ers. 

I am so glad that the Jets dropped their college reject uniforms in favor of their 80s look and the Niners of course still look great. I also like the decision for the Jets to rock the green pants. The shade of green they chose just pops so well.

 

4) Ravens vs Chiefs

Great unis from both squads and thank goodness Baltimore didn't wear their black yoga pants for this one. My only gripe is that I think the Ravens would have looked better with black socks otherwise no complaints

 

My Worst

1) Rams vs Lions

I still don't like the Rams current set of uniforms and I question the Lions using the all blue look with stripeless pants. A slight downgrade from the playoff game and I'm still miffed that the Rams botched their redesign in my opinion. At least the Lions jerseys are good

2)  Dolphins vs Jaguars

The Dolphins current uniforms are kinda meh and the Jaguars look like a Sun Belt team. I think the current uniforms the Jags are sporting are better than their old ones but, only a little better. Also, I gotta say I am not a fan of white pants with white socks it just looks like they are rocking leggings.

 

3) Panthers vs Saints.

Not many games this week that I would say are terrible but, I was not a fan of this game uniform wise. I despise the Saints all black look but, they are gonna keep wearing it for tradition's sake. The Panthers have one my favorite looks in the NFL right now but, they kind of ruined it by wearing white all white socks with their white pants.

 

Honorable Mentions

Buccaneers vs Commanders: The Buccaneers look awesome and the Commanders are close to having a solid set of uniforms. I think could use stripes on their pants and I would like them to wear their Gold pants with their Home jerseys. I know people roast the Commanders current identity but, I don't think they are particularly terrible they just need a few adjustments.

Seahawks vs Broncos: I absolutely adore the Seahawks 90s throwbacks. Wearing those alone would get them into my best list but, the Broncos going with the all white pushes this game out just barely.

[fouhy12]

Thanks for starting this @Rj0498! Going to post my Week 1 thoughts here.

 

Best of the Week:

Cowboys at Browns

This looked like a classic football game. I love how the white facemasks look for Cleveland.

 

Jets at 49ers

I love to see the Jets embrace green once again. This matchup was a pair of white, striped socks for the Jets away from being perfect.

 

Patriots at Bengals

I loved Cincy's all-orange look. That uniform clearly understands how to use a lot of one color while breaking it up in the right ways. I also like the Pats road uniforms, so this gets up near the top.

 

What Could Have Been:

Here, I'll post matchups that could have been so much better with different uniforms worn.

Packers at Eagles

Honestly, I thought this game looked good. Green and yellow vs black and white is a great matchup, and the Eagles' uniforms would be the basis of a great look for a different team. They had good reason to wear the alternates, too. But we haven't seen the Packers in white against the Eagles in midnight green since the 2010 Wild Card round, and I love that pairing.

 

Rams at Lions

I've really come around on the new Rams set, especially when they wear the yellow pants. If the Lions wore silver pants instead of opting for the stripe-less mono-blue look, this goes in the best of the week list for me.

 

What Are You Wearing, Man?

Panthers at Saints

All-black vs all-white. Boring!

[YelichGraphics]

Getting ahead of myself before the conclusion of MNF.

 

Week 2 Summarized: 

A decent bit of great, and whole lot of mid. A few teams strengthen their looks, and few diminishing them.

Best of Week 2:
Lions Bucs- What a match-up. This is what teams need to do when deciding pants. The Bucs perfectly balance the light and cool colored Lions with their red and pewter. Excellent choice in not wearing white pants. And the same can be said for the Lions. Great choice in not wearing blue or white. This is what this uniform match-up should always look like and what the plague should strive to look like.
Bills Dolphins- Ok, I'm biased as a Bills fan, but finally they trust in the white over blue and to see it opposed by the Miami throwbacks? Top tier. If it wasn't for the Lions and Bucs this would be my number 1 for sure.

Packers Colts- I think it's hard to rank this one anywhere else in the tier list. Two historical franchise wearing what they wear every week, yet it is always a great look when these two play. The only thing I feel like would make this better is if Green Bay was away and Indianapolis was home just for the combos, however I will admit the Green Bay sun makes those colors pop way better than Lucas Oil would.

Maybe I should have done a top 5 instead of 3. I think that Chiefs/Bengals, and 49ers/Vikings could have reached that top tier as well but I really wanted to establish the tiers in their respective categories.  

Above Average Week 2:
49ers Vikings- The 49ers have one of the best looks in football and something about the lighting in US Bank Stadium really makes their away set look incredible. And on the other side the Vikings really wore the best set to contrast this. The only way I would see this matchup increase is if the Vikings wore their throwbacks. The only thing that is keeping this outside of the top 3 is the Vikings uniforms. They are just not as good as the teams above them. They aren't awful in fact I really love them, they just don't compare to the teams above.
Chiefs Bengals- I struggled with this one. I think because both teams wear warm colors it doesn't make for the greatest match-up yet both teams are wearing their best in the moment. Still a great match-up.
Ravens Raiders- Very similar to the 49ers and Ravens and its not because of the purple but because I believe that the best combos where worn, the Raiders are always a classic, yet it doesn't land in the top 3 for me. Great match-up however this is as high as this can get.
Patriots Seahawks- I'll be real the only reason they are this high is because if the Patriots silver pants. When they wear silver the Patriots have one of the best looks in the league. I really wish Seattle wore their gray pants as well or wore white because of the navy overhaul.
Giants Commanders- Same as the Patriots the addition of the gold pants makes this uniform matchup significantly higher. The only reason it is not higher is because the Commanders don't have one of the best looks in the league with it. It definitely improves the look but it doesn't fix the over arching issues. The Giants always look good IMO. Wish they still had gray pants or wore their throwbacks however their current identity isn't hurting this match-up too much.

Below Average Week 2:
Welcome to the "one team wore the wrong pants and ruined the match-up section"
Jets Titans- Jets green is fantastic. The Titans ruined this game. I mean their look isn't great to begin with but if they just wore carolina pants this match-up goes up into the above average tier. 
Chargers Panthers-This one may be controversial for how low it is, but the is just an overload of blue. This would've been a great game for the Chargers to wear their yellow pants. Don't get it twisted I love the Chargers look and I'd argue that the Panthers are in the middle of the pack in terms of uniform but it was just an unfortunate match-up for both teams.
Cowboys Saints- Cowboys have one of the most overrated looks because of their mismatching blues and grays, and the Saints refuse to wear gold pants in the regular season. That's about all I can say bout this match-up.
Jags Browns- All of the Jaguars had to do was wear teal pants and this match-up is within the top 5. My main complaint with the Jaguars is when they wear all white or all black there isn't enough teal on the uniforms to make them pop, and when they don't wear teal it takes the entire life of the uniform away. Such a disappointment.
Broncos Steelers- Steelers look like the Steelers. I for one have been a mild supporter of the Broncos new look but I will say with full confidence that there wasn't a look that would have made this match-up better. The navy pants were too dark against a primarily black team, the orange would have clashed with the yellow in a bad way, and the white would have taken the life out of the uniform. I'm interested to see how they look against other teams but they did not look great against the Steelers.

Worst of Week 2:
Falcons Eagles- So this game hasn't happened yet however I can comfortably put them near the bottom. This matchup is very very similar to the Jets Titans. Eagles are G/G/W/W and the Falcons are mono white. Falcons have one of the worst looks in the league. I don't mind the Eagles but I've also never been the biggest fan of white pants with their midnight green. Like I said similar to the Jets Titans, the only difference is the caliber of jerseys the Jets have compared to the Eagles.
Rams Cardinals- I hate the bone uniform. Honestly the biggest reason I hate it is not the fruit roll up numbers or other weird quirks, its addition of white and having a white horn on the uniform. You can't see it and when you do it looks like a mistake. The only saving grace is wearing them with blue pants against a red team. And speaking of red teams... This is beating a dead horse but Arizona's away set is awesome, near the top of the league. The home set is a bottom look in the league. I'd ask for them to wear white pants but everyone knows that will not be happening this season.
Bears Texans- Its just the Bears. I can get over the Texans look. It's fine. I like the horns. The all white was a decent choice although I would have prefers navy pants. The Bears orange needs to be dumped immediately. They don't play well in them, the orange helmet is brutal, and I was never a big fan of the orange jersey to begin with. They just don't look like the Bears. They look like a high school team. 

[fouhy12]

A little late, but my Week 2 thoughts:

 

Best of the Week:

Lions at Buccaneers

This is how a football game should look. My oh my. Stripes, contrasting pants and socks, vibrant colors. Pants that match the helmet on both sides.

 

49ers at Vikings

Purple vs gold always looks great. Obviously, there are sock issues with both teams, but when those are correct, this looks gorgeous. Bonus points for the sunlight as well.

 

Bills at Dolphins

Not a fan of the Bills wearing blue socks with this uniform, but everything else about this is great.

 

What Could Have Been:

Rams at Cardinals

This is a very nice color contrast, and you can barely even tell the Rams are wearing bone.

But the teams choosing both of these uniforms when the game could have had these is crazy.

 

Browns at Jaguars

Instead of orange vs teal, we got brown vs black and white. Boring!

 

What Are You Wearing, Man?

I'm giving this award to both the Broncos and the Bears this week. The Broncos, a team with orange as their primary color and a brand-new uniform decided to wear white at home with navy helmets, pants, and socks in their home opener. Meanwhile, the Bears, a team with navy as their primary color, trotted out their traffic cone alternates on the road in primetime. I don't mind Denver's new set, but this seems like the worst possible combination to trot out in front of your own fans for the first time. Meanwhile, Chicago's set is well designed, but it makes them look more like the college team in their state. Their play on the field did nothing to help the confusion.

[fouhy12]

Some Week 3 thoughts.

 

Best of the Week:

Bears at Colts

This would have been better in the daylight, but it is hard to see this pairing of classic uniforms as anything other than fantastic.

 

Chiefs at Falcons

I've come around on this Falcons uniform when they wear this combination, and the Chiefs can make all-white look good. Going against a black and red team, I thought it was a good time to pull out the white pants.

 

Patriots at Jets

This matchup looked like a blue team against a green team for really the first time since 2019, and it was amazing. Green and white vs navy, silver, and red just works.

 

Chargers at Steelers

This matchup looked good when the Chargers wore blue socks, so it gets basically an honorable mention here. Good contrast between the teams with bright colors in daylight. 

 

What Could Have Been:

Lions at Cardinals

Arizona's uniform is, to me, an example of an alternate done well. The helmet looks fantastic with the red sheen and finish on the logo, and the big stripes break up the monochrome and make it fit with their primary set. Detroit, on the other hand, looks like the equipment manager forgot to bring the pants and had to make an emergency stop at Kohl's to grab whatever leggings they had.

 

Imagine how much better it would look with the Lions wearing this.

 

49ers at Rams

The Rams, somehow, have not worn a white jersey with yellow or gold pants since 2007! Blue vs red looks good, but this matchup would look better with the Rams wearing their yellow pants regardless of jersey.

 

Eagles at Saints

I actually like the Eagles wearing the white socks with the midnight green pants, but the Saints need to bring back the gold pants. It makes this whole matchup much drabber.

 

What Are You Wearing, Man?

Carolina Panthers, what is your plan? Last week, you wore light blue socks against a light blue team. This week, all black bottoms against a black team. Please think about contrast when picking your uniform.

 

Also, the Titans and Broncos are getting called out here. Both teams followed the same formular this week: dark helmet, light jersey, white pants and socks. With socks that match either the helmet or the jersey, those could have been solid looking games. Instead, their uniforms just look unbalanced. 

 

[YelichGraphics]

Week 3:

 

Week 3 Summarized: 

There was a lot of hard decisions this week, considering the matchups. A lot of good and a lot of mid.

 

Best of Week 3:
49ers Rams- This is number one for one reason only... COLOR. Usually I would never rank the Rams this high however this is by far their best look in their closet. That mixed with the 49ers beautiful red uniforms and the California sun, this divisional game was in my opinion the best of the bunch. Honestly once the 49ers realized they could still use three stripes and have their throwbacks in the back pocket, they quickly became the best uniform set in the league.
Jets Patriots- This is what both teams should look like end of story. Correct usage of pants, and socks. My only gripe is Metlife's lighting. I always felt their night games tend to wash out color compared to others.

Bears Colts- Just like the last one. This is what both of these teams should look like on any given Sunday. 

This week had a much more concise Top 3 than last week.

Above Average Week 3:
Chargers Steelers-  A great matchup with great looking teams. Honestly the only thing that would make this better is if the game was at Sofi and the Chargers could wear some blue. The only thing holding this matchup back is the Chargers all white however this would've been a poor game for them to wear yellow pants so this is the best that it'll be.
Dolphins Seahawks- I was surprised how much I liked this matchup. I think a majority of it comes from the Dolphins wearing teal pants. If they wore white this would've dropped to the bottom of below average or into the bottom 3. Yet Seattle has an uncharacteristically sunny day and all of the colors pop. Although I believe we are getting to the very end of this look in Seattle, they do own the best mono-chromatic look in the league.
Vikings Texans- Great looking sets from both teams. This might be an unpopular take but I believe the Vikings should've worn their primary homes this week. It has a very similar modern feel to the Texans new set and would've made for a great matchup. And then you could've saved the throwback for a divisional rival or another team who has a more classic look. Besides that it's a very good set and made for a good looking game.
Falcons Chiefs- Chiefs make the right decision to not go red pants to make this a red heavy game, and the Falcons made the right choice to not wear black pants to make this a mono black v white contest. No complaints. This is the best this matchup could've looked minus the Falcons throwbacks.
Giants Browns- I struggled with this one. This could've very well been in the top 3 and for some time I considered it. The Giants are the reason this is as low as it is. Grey pants would've helped. Blue in the uniform could've helped. I think we might be getting to the point where it is time for new Giants uniforms. This matchup should be in the Top 3.

 

Below Average Week 3 :

Welcome to the "one team wore the wrong pants and ruined the match-up section" again....
Bills Jaguars- I won't even bother making a new comment for this one. You get the same line as last week. All of the Jaguars had to do was wear teal pants and this match-up is within the top 5. My main complaint with the Jaguars is when they wear all white or all black there isn't enough teal on the uniforms to make them pop, and when they don't wear teal it takes the entire life of the uniform away. Such a disappointment. Hopefully the butt kicking they received changes their mind.
Cardinals Lions- I don't mind the Cardinals all-black look. I actually really enjoy their newest version of it. And I really love the Lions new look. If the Lions wear their Blue pants or anything with a stripe this would be significantly higher on the list.
Broncos Buccaneers- One team had to wear dark pants. I don't care who but someone had to do it to help the contrast of this game. Bucs could've worn pewter pants or the Broncos could've worn navy pants. That's it.
Bengals Commanders- Something about this matchup just looks... off. The first thing that came to mind was the pants and that maybe the Bengals could've worn orange or the Commanders could've gone yellow. In all reality I think these two teams just don't look right together on the field regardless of the combinations.
Raiders Panthers- Silver and Black Silver and Black. It could've been worse I guess. There was just an overload of silver and black. The Panthers just looked like an over designed version of the Raiders with some blue thrown in there.

Bottom of Week 3:
Saints Eagles- Honestly not to different from the below average tier. If the Saints wear gold pants this matchup would've easily been in the above average tier. However, they didn't. And then the Saints also had issues where some of the lineman were wearing the throwback numbers on the home uniforms.They are another team in the, it might be time to make a change category for me, and one of the few where I can actually agree if they went back to their throwbacks. Every uniform decision in the last 4-5 years has been brutal. Eagles looked the best they could.
Ravens Cowboys- Personal opinion but I'm just nor a fan of this look for the Ravens. Imagine if they went black over purple. Just a whole lot of meh. And the Cowboys are hard to put anywhere up to the top with the mismatching blues and silvers.
Titans Packers- Packers look great. Titans look like crap. It's a shame how awful they look. Would've been number one if they chose this one for their Oilers throwbacks.

[Rj0498]

Well I guess we will just continue making posts for this one instead of making a new topic for each week heh.

week 3 was another solid week aesthetically I have very few complaints.

 

My best

 

1) Bears vs Colts a wonderfully old school match up between teams that have very little reason to change up their uniforms. 

 

2) Vikings vs Texans. Trying not to be biased but, come on. Those Vikings throwbacks are so good I almost wish they were full time uniforms and the Texans new unis may be downgrades but, they still manage to be solid especially compared to others in their division.

 

3) Chargers vs Steelers. I just love the chargers uniforms. I do wish they wore the yellow pants but, otherwise this might be their best identity yet. I may complain about the Steelers number font but, it’s not enough to make me trash their uniforms as they have one the most timeless looks in all of sports

 

The worst

 

1)  Seahawks vs Dolphins. Yeah, I am not fond of the Seahawks current uniforms. They just scream 2010s rebrand desperate to get teenagers to wear their jerseys and the dolphins insist on their current dull look despite having a full set of throwbacks they can pivot to.

 

2) Eagles vs Saints. The saints are just gonna keep dragging those black leggings out huh? It also kind of sucks that the eagles won a Super Bowl wearing this set of uniforms because I know for sure they are going to keep this boring set for some time. Obviously, eagles fans aren’t gonna care since you know, they won a Super Bowl ha ha.

 

Almost there

 

1) Lions vs Cardinals. Ok hear me out lol. While I don’t like the cardinals insistence on making black their alternate uniform color, these jerseys don’t look too bad. I think they should wear these with their white pants or just wear different color socks just to break up the overload of black. And the lions should probably stick to their silver pants for the whole season.

 

2) 49ers vs Rams. Honestly, the 49ers uniforms almost carried this one to my best list. The colors help too. Blue and yellow vs red and gold is just too good. Please LA just use your 70s throwbacks that y’all were using a few years back. They had such a easy layup rebrand but, they attempted a alley oop that bounced off the rim and into the opponent’s hands.