NFL Jersey Stripes

[Dodger]

So I do realize this is an attempt to put wrap-around stripes on a sleeveless uniform...

...for the record I think a few teams can pull this off and make it look good.

*ducks and hides*

But then there's this type of stripe...

...which goes over the shoulder, and is pretty much just a patch of lines sitting on the players shoulders.

So, are the stripes in the second photo intentional? Because they almost look too ugly to be unintentional, if that makes sense. I'm really not similiar with the style of today's football jerseys. This thread is really open to any stripes/templates/back-in-my-day-we-played-in-sleeves-and-looked-classy comments. This subject matter really interests me. Also, if you find any good pictures to share please do so. Thanks.

[STL FANATIC]

I'm not sure why teams with shoulder stripes don't all echo either the Panthers or the Rams. Both of those teams do a fairly good job of getting the stripes to go at least to the end of the material.

[Dodger]

Well...

But this is pretty decent...

[BrandMooreArt]

the thing with the Steelers (and probally a majority of teams) is that without those large stripes, the jerseys wouldnt be a Steelers jersey. its part of their identity, and with the modern uniform, it has to be the way it is to fit all of the "stripes" on there. so what if they dont wrap around a sleeve; i think it still looks good, and more importantly its instantly recognizable as Pittsburgh Steelers, and not Iowa Hawkeyes or anyone else

i dont really like vertical stripes though like CAR and STL. it looks like they need a different color shoulder (Jets) that would make it reflect what Pittsburgh has done. that the way i see it any way; these arnt so much sleeve stripes as they are shoulder elements

[Cianfrocco]

i think it still looks good, and more importantly its instantly recognizable as Pittsburgh Steelers, and not Iowa Hawkeyes or anyone else

Iowa still uses the exact same sleeve stripes as the Steelers. It is the number font and the Steelers logo patch that set them apart.

Even though I usually lean more towards a traditional look, I think it is finally time to get rid of these kinds of stripes, as they just seem out of place and forced on today's jerseys. You don't see baseball jerseys with collars anymore, and basketball uniforms only started adding logos and designs to the shorts when they got longer. The shape and style of the uniform changes over time, and the overall design should adjust accordingly.

[sigepraider]

Well...

But this is pretty decent...

But you can also clearly see that Steve Smith's stripes go all the way around

I know not everyone on the team is like that (he actually maybe one of the few), but from what I have seen a solid number come down at least to the armpit area. I think its safe to say and attempt is made to bring the strips all the way around as opposed to having them stop at the Shoulder pad line IMHO.

[Matito]

I think I may be in the minority here, but to me, the full shoulder loop looks really dated. Not "classic" dated, but just out-of-date.

Generally, only QBs have the classic sleeve, so unless they all go back to that across the board, they new stripe patterns need to adapt to the new jersey cuts. This looks alright, but I prefer this.

[BlueSky]

I think I may be in the minority here, but to me, the full shoulder loop looks really dated. Not "classic" dated, but just out-of-date.

Generally, only QBs have the classic sleeve, so unless they all go back to that across the board, they new stripe patterns need to adapt to the new jersey cuts. This looks alright, but I prefer this.

You have it exactly backwards. Using the Colts as an example, the original design used the full stripe and that's what should be on their jerseys. It's absurd to 'adapt' the design to the jersey cut, it should be the other way around. There has to be a way to do it.

[rebelx]

You know, thing is, I don't really understand why jerseys had to trend toward not having sleeves over time. Yeah, it helps players to avoid getting tackled or held, and blah, blah, blah, but uniforms, as many here have pointed out on countless other threads, are supposed to be just that?UNIFORM. Having a couple players with normal length sleeves and a bunch of others (read: linemen) with almost no sleeves just looks weird. For the almost sleeveless players on teams with sleeve stripes, the stripes are often barely even visible and sometimes completely gone, so you end up with a team with not only greatly differing sleeve lengths, but differing striping patterns. How stupid is that?

[BrandMooreArt]

i think it still looks good, and more importantly its instantly recognizable as Pittsburgh Steelers, and not Iowa Hawkeyes or anyone else

Iowa still uses the exact same sleeve stripes as the Steelers. It is the number font and the Steelers logo patch that set them apart.

you're right they are the same, i didnt realize that. still, any adjustment to the Steelers jersey just wouldnt read as a steelers jersey to me

[-kj]

I think I may be in the minority here, but to me, the full shoulder loop looks really dated. Not "classic" dated, but just out-of-date.

I don't know that it looks dated, per se, but I always thought the Panthers' full loops looked very awkward. I find the partials--if done right (Jets, for example)--very pleasing.

[BBTV]

The Jets are a model for a traditional uniform adjusted to modern cuts. The Steelers would look a million times better if they adopted something similar.

[bigdub81]

The Jets are a model for a traditional uniform adjusted to modern cuts. The Steelers would look a million times better if they adopted something similar.

I don't think that you can say the same for the Steelers since the stripe patterns are totally opposite. The orginial Jets pattern included an extra stripe above the sleeve cuff which is elminated on their current 'throwback' look. I'm assuming it was eliminated in order to place the TV number and Reebok logo. The other thing to split a hair about is that the underarm part of the sleeve is the body color of the jersey which shouldn't be if it were to be a true 'throwback'. It isn't but is a 'play' on that old school theme which makes it look nice. The NY jETS, logo patch doesn't belong and I would assume also that it's there for merchandising purposes unlike the Steelers, whom I believe placed their logo on the jersey opposite the side that the helmet doesn't have one. They're stripe pattern is deemed classic and their only modifications was the font change which IMO didn't need to be, but it is what it is.

[tBBP]

Too many times, too many people/teams/marketing heds use "classic" as a reason not to adjust.

I can understand classics. I can understand traditional. What I can not understand is why the Steelers still have not gotten the clue that those fat-ass stripe patterns no longer fit on the jersey sleeves/armholes of any player not named Roethlisberger or Reed. (Hell, even the punter's sleeve stripes get cut off at times--but then, not every team has a punter who's built like a linebacker, either.)

We saw this with the Packers somewhere in the mid-90s. They reduced the size/width of the stripe pattern, but they're still there today. The Steelboyz would be wise to follow suit. Ain't gotta eliminate them entirely, just trim them down a good bit.

The way sleeves/armholes are tailored these days, I don't so much mind the "cut-off effect", so long as they're all on there and visible (I'm looking at you, 49ers) and not cut off or truncated like so many of the Steelers' sleeve stripe patterns are. But then, that's also a direct result of the way those armholes are tailored--some players want no extra fabric whatsoever; others don't mind it so much. Case example: Brian Urlacher. Notice that he actually has a little semblance of real sleeves on his jersey. As does Steve Smith.

Which brings me back to the Panthers, and the pics posted above.

First of all, Smith ain't the biggest guy in the world, so I'm sure he's used to wearing a lil' extra fabric (and you can see where he's got some of that extra fabric rolled/tucked up under his armpits there), whereas Jonathan Stewart and Julius Peppers and them have barely any armhole fabric at all, resulting in the shoulder-swoosh look they have now. At some point, the Panthers might want to look at going the route of the Texans with those shoulder swooshes--having them all taper at a point in front and back. That way, the cuts of the jerseys wouldn't be so much a hindrance.

NOw, as far as the Colts are concerned (and to a lesser degree the Jets), there's absolutely no excuse for those supposed-to-be shoulder loops stopping up at the clavicle region. I'm fairly certain if Reebok doesn't want to put any extra effort into tailoring those jerseys to accomodate a closed loop, then they could at lest get them down to the armpits, at least. That would at least the "strip of tape" look on the jerseys of so many Colts players, particularly the bigger guys.

OF course...this is all just my opinion...my two rusted Lincolns.

[STL FANATIC]

I don't really mind the way the Steelers do it at all. You essentially see the same amount of stripe as you would rarely see the underarm portion of the stripe even if the sleeve went all the way around.

I'm much more concerned with shoulder loops that are just small arches (though, I agree that the Jets look doesn't really suffer any because of this) and sleeve striping that is cut short top to bottom.

[Ferdinand Cesarano]

basketball uniforms only started adding logos and designs to the shorts when they got longer.

Oh, I don't know about that.

You don't see baseball jerseys with collars anymore

It is true that no baseball jersey has had a full collar in a long time. But the White Sox 1970s jersey could easily have had this feature instead of the half-collar, and this would have improved the jersey.

Also, I believe that, this season, some teams wore collared throwbacks that looked pretty nice.

The shape and style of the uniform changes over time, and the overall design should adjust accordingly.

In soccer, they have shown that this feature is fully compatible with current-day uniforms:

The evolving of the cuts of jerseys in any sport cannot really be used as an excuse to completely jettison any one design element, be it collars or sleeve stripes or anything else.

[Sport]

For me, I'd just like to see uniformity across the board for one team. The Colts players all have the shoulder stripes that end at the collarbone and though I'd prefer the full wrap around at least it's consistent throughout the team. The Steelers are a mess for this reason and so are the Bengals. Willie Parker does not wear the same uniform as Ben Roethlisberger. If you have a big sleeve stripe then shrink it down a little so it's the same size on every jersey no matter who is wearing the jersey or what cut you've got. The Redskins can't get this right either, Jason Campbell's stripes are the old big ones from the 80's while Clinton Portis wears the tiny sleeve cuff version. It's a uniform, let's make it uniform.

[beansdooma]

I think I may be in the minority here, but to me, the full shoulder loop looks really dated. Not "classic" dated, but just out-of-date.

Generally, only QBs have the classic sleeve, so unless they all go back to that across the board, they new stripe patterns need to adapt to the new jersey cuts. This looks alright, but I prefer this.

I tend to agree with this more. Maybe it's a product of growing up with the sleeves as they are now, but I think a lot of uniforms would look really strange with the full loop today, the Colts being a good example of that.

[-(dp)-]

I noticed that Dwight Freeney has been having his jersey altered to make the two stripes come together, and it looks a little better at least.

[tBBP]

For me, I'd just like to see uniformity across the board for one team. The Colts players all have the shoulder stripes that end at the collarbone and though I'd prefer the full wrap around at least it's consistent throughout the team. The Steelers are a mess for this reason and so are the Bengals. Willie Parker does not wear the same uniform as Ben Roethlisberger. If you have a big sleeve stripe then shrink it down a little so it's the same size on every jersey no matter who is wearing the jersey or what cut you've got. The Redskins can't get this right either, Jason Campbell's stripes are the old big ones from the 80's while Clinton Portis wears the tiny sleeve cuff version. It's a uniform, let's make it uniform.

The Bengals' aesthetic is a whole 'nother bag of issues for a whole 'nother thread.