Vikings Throwbacks

[bigdub81]

I started working on this last night after the game cause' I knew that there was going to be a thread like this. I myself like the new design of the Vikings although I think it needs some tweaking here and there. The throwbacks aren't bad but then again they aren't whats needed IMO. A compromise of era's is what I tried to achieve with this concept and I think it could do the team some good. C&C

[The_Admiral]

Why don't you put the hoops on the other side of the sleeve stitches? Then you can have shoulder numbers on both jerseys and not worry about the nameplates running out of space.

[nuordr]

I started working on this last night after the game cause' I knew that there was going to be a thread like this. I myself like the new design of the Vikings although I think it needs some tweaking here and there. The throwbacks aren't bad but then again they aren't whats needed IMO. A compromise of era's is what I tried to achieve with this concept and I think it could do the team some good. C&C

I like how the design's helmet matches the rest of the uniform. However, I believe the new style is perfect the way it is. Not dull like their throwback uniforms.

[infrared41]

So then Volvos should just look like this, but maybe with modern engines?

We all have a certain yearning to see things as they were when we were young, but at some point, it's important to realize that our "nostalgia" isn't some 10-year-old kid's nostalgia, and that kid is the future fanbase of the team.

Using that very same logic I guess you think that this...

is a better version of this...

"Nostalgia" has nothing to do with whether or not something looks good. I think the 70's White Sox uniforms are the perfect example of where your argument completely falls apart. No one is pining away for these...

Why you ask? Because those uniforms were uglier than . My guess is there were a lot of 10 year old kids in 1977 who were also White Sox fans. I don't see many 42 year olds running around here claiming those uniforms were the best. Just because it's "modern" doesn't mean it automatically looks better. Conversely, just because it's "nostalgic" doesn't mean it looks great. In the end the only thing that matters is whether or not a uniform is ugly. And the Vikings current uniforms fall directly into the ugly category. The throwbacks are just a better looking uniform. I'd feel the same way if last night was the first time the Vikings ever wore that uniform.

[Buster]

So then Volvos should just look like this, but maybe with modern engines?

We all have a certain yearning to see things as they were when we were young, but at some point, it's important to realize that our "nostalgia" isn't some 10-year-old kid's nostalgia, and that kid is the future fanbase of the team.

Using that very same logic I guess you think that this...

is a better version of this...

"Nostalgia" has nothing to do with whether or not something looks good. I think the 70's White Sox uniforms are the perfect example of where your argument completely falls apart. No one is pining away for these...

Why you ask? Because those uniforms were uglier than . My guess is there were a lot of 10 year old kids in 1977 who were also White Sox fans. I don't see many 42 year olds running around here claiming those uniforms were the best. Just because it's "modern" doesn't mean it automatically looks better. Conversely, just because it's "nostalgic" doesn't mean it looks great. In the end the only thing that matters is whether or not a uniform is ugly. And the Vikings current uniforms fall directly into the ugly category. The throwbacks are just a better looking uniform. I'd feel the same way if last night was the first time the Vikings ever wore that uniform.

Excellent post. Also, as a White Sox fan, you perfectly countered his claim that I want everything the way it was when I was a child. No way I want those Sox uniforms back, but the simplistic and tasteful design of the Vikes throwbacks are far superior than the busy, jumbled, modern mess of the current uniforms.

There are good and bad feelings of nostalgia. The Vikings throwbacks conjured up the good kind. As would the Eagles in Kelly green, Jets also, the simpler Bengals uniforms of the Boomer era, the Seahawks with silver, blue and green...or the Broncos in orange jerseys. Some looks are just timeless and any return to them is always an upgrade to current modern, failed attempts at improoving on their looks.

[Buster]

OK, if you don't like the Volvo analogy, here's another one.

When I was a kid, my friend's mom used to drive us around in an '80s Honda Accord. I have fond memories of those days. But in no way do I think that

This:

looks better than this:

Just in case it isn't clear: Minnesota throwbacks == '80s Accord.

The older one is LESS UGLY than the new, hideous model.

[Saintsfan]

Its not true that every modernisation is an improvement. Change is not the same as progress. In my view, the current Vikes duds are NOT an improvement on the old unis.

[BBTV]

Of course it's impossible to make blanket statements. I don't feel that everyone is saying that "everything old is good", nor am I saying that "everything new is good". Perfect example would be the Buffalo Bills. I think that their 2002 update was as bad of an update as I've ever seen (well, maybe the buffaslug was worse.)

I really do think that some people's design judgement is clouded by feelings of nostalgia, even if not in every single case. In the case of the Vikings though, I simply cannot see how this generic uniform design that was explicitly designed for an older template is a viable option in today's NFL. Just my opinion though, it's obvious why this "thing" is considered subjective and not a science.

[Bmac]

I started working on this last night after the game cause' I knew that there was going to be a thread like this. I myself like the new design of the Vikings although I think it needs some tweaking here and there. The throwbacks aren't bad but then again they aren't whats needed IMO. A compromise of era's is what I tried to achieve with this concept and I think it could do the team some good. C&C

That is extremely similar to a concept I started a few days ago. I think it looks great.

[-kj]

The color balance doesn't look right on the throwbacks to me. The numbers and striping being primarily white doesn't work for me. I'd rather the striping be reversed: primarily yellow, with white trim. The away version shown above already does something similar (the main part of the striping being yellow, while the numbers are primarily purple), and it works very well.

Of course, I actually like the new look (minus a tweak or two), so I obviously know nothing about jersey design.

[trekbkr]

The numbers and striping being primarily white doesn't work for me. I'd rather the striping be reversed: primarily yellow, with white trim.

Once upon a time I had an old NFL Almanac -- mid 70's or so -- which had franchise info for every team, league records, etc., and it identified the Vikings' colors as being "purple and white, with gold trim" (emphasis mine). I've always appreciated that distinction, and thought it set the Vikes apart from an LSU-like use of purple and gold.

[oldschoolvikings]

I started working on this last night after the game cause' I knew that there was going to be a thread like this. I myself like the new design of the Vikings although I think it needs some tweaking here and there. The throwbacks aren't bad but then again they aren't whats needed IMO. A compromise of era's is what I tried to achieve with this concept and I think it could do the team some good. C&C

The one thing, more than any other single element, I don't want to see return are those road uni shoulder hoops. Especially now that the modern jersey cut makes that type of design so bastardized. I'd rather keep the new look, as is, than get those creaky road unis back.

[Red Wolf]

I started working on this last night after the game cause' I knew that there was going to be a thread like this. I myself like the new design of the Vikings although I think it needs some tweaking here and there. The throwbacks aren't bad but then again they aren't whats needed IMO. A compromise of era's is what I tried to achieve with this concept and I think it could do the team some good. C&C

The one thing, more than any other single element, I don't want to see return are those road uni shoulder hoops. Especially now that the modern jersey cut makes that type of design so bastardized. I'd rather keep the new look, as is, than get those creaky road unis back.

Same thing happens with the sleeve stripes. Though quarterbacks usually have long enough sleeves to pull it off, most everybody else doesn't. Then again, that doesn't really bother me that much, nor do the shoulder stripes that everybody on here complains about.

[Sport]

I started working on this last night after the game cause' I knew that there was going to be a thread like this. I myself like the new design of the Vikings although I think it needs some tweaking here and there. The throwbacks aren't bad but then again they aren't whats needed IMO. A compromise of era's is what I tried to achieve with this concept and I think it could do the team some good. C&C

The one thing, more than any other single element, I don't want to see return are those road uni shoulder hoops. Especially now that the modern jersey cut makes that type of design so bastardized. I'd rather keep the new look, as is, than get those creaky road unis back.

you mean like this?

THAT looked awful. On properly cut jerseys it looked pretty good (Dante Culpepper), but there's no way we can trust the manufacturers to wrap the UCLA stripes all the way around on every jersey.

[bigdub81]

you mean like this?

THAT looked awful. On properly cut jerseys it looked pretty good (Dante Culpepper), but there's no way we can trust the manufacturers to wrap the UCLA stripes all the way around on every jersey.

True, just as the stripes looked great on Favre because he actually wore a traditional jersey with...wait for it...SLEEVES! Maybe the NFL should actually hold jersey standards and manufactures to a stricter rule set and the players that modify them as well.