Patriots throwbacks

[BlueSky]

The point of the AFL Legacy games isn't to throw back to 1960, but to celebrate the AFL. They're doing this because it is the AFL's 50th Anniversary, using that as a pretext to honor the league. By allowing the teams to select uniforms from different years of the AFL, it gives a more colorful celebration of that league, IMO.

Which makes it even more of a shame that the Dolphins and Bengals are not being included in the Legacy Games. If they really wanted to celebrate the first year of the league, the original teams should be wearing 1960 unis...but to celebrate the entire history of the AFL and not include Miami and Cincinnati is inexcusable.

I disagree. The 100th Anniversary celebration of the NFL's founding surely won't (and shouldn't) include the Panthers, Jags, Bucs, Seahawks et. al. would it?

So where would you draw the line, Saints? Cowboys? Browns? Eagles? By your logic the NFL Anniversary should only be celebrated by the...

• Akron Professionals

• Buffalo All-Americans

• Canton Bulldogs

• Chicago Cardinals

• Chicago Tigers

• Cleveland Tigers

• Columbus Panhandles

• Dayton Triangles

• Decatur Staleys

• Detroit Heralds

• Hammond Pros

• Muncie Flyers

• Rochester (N.Y.) Jeffersons

• Rock Island Independents

I agree with you that a more inclusive approach would have been appropriate, but I was pointing out what the NFL's logic appears to be. They chose to celebrate the founding of the AFL. The Dolphins and Bengals weren't founding members. Following that line of thinking, a celebration of the NFL's founding would include whatever current teams existed them in some form (predecessor, etc.).

It's puzzling why they didn't take the same approach as they did in '94. Of course, in 1969 they included all the teams but all they did was wear a patch.

[Chazberg]

Another thing they screwed up with these throwbacks is the size of the helmet logo. The logo was about 25% smaller from 1961-81, and they enlarged it in 1982.

Well they also didn't wear Revo Speed helmets back then either. Guys, there are too many differences in uniform cut and style today to be able to get a throwback 100% correct, unless you wanted them to wear single-bar helmets and run out of the Power-I the whole game. I think the Legacy program execution has been phenomenal, with the coaches and refs even being included.

And like other people have mentioned, if every team had to stick to their 1960 design, the teams would be almost unrecognizable and it would diminish the fun of the whole project.

[The_Admiral]

I'm sick of AFL throwbacks. I don't want to see them anymore. Yes, the Oilers look cool, but on the whole I'd prefer to know which teams I'm watching. Kind of odd that the Patriots' 59-0 drubbing, quite possibly a very memorable game, will be forever marred by their hideous Pat Patriot throwbacks, not to mention all the silly pink accessories for breast cancer month.

[Audiodrama]

not to mention all the silly pink accessories for breast cancer month.

Wow. Seriously? Hating on the throwbacks is one thing, but geez. I hope you were kidding.

[BlueSky]

Another thing they screwed up with these throwbacks is the size of the helmet logo. The logo was about 25% smaller from 1961-81, and they enlarged it in 1982.

Well they also didn't wear Revo Speed helmets back then either. Guys, there are too many differences in uniform cut and style today to be able to get a throwback 100% correct, unless you wanted them to wear single-bar helmets and run out of the Power-I the whole game. I think the Legacy program execution has been phenomenal, with the coaches and refs even being included.

And like other people have mentioned, if every team had to stick to their 1960 design, the teams would be almost unrecognizable and it would diminish the fun of the whole project.

That would be awesome.

One thing I do think would be cool and appropriate is NNOB for teams that didn't wear them prior to the merger. Wouldn't affect the former AFL teams of course.

Even the cheerleaders have been retro-dressed. Also think it's great the way Denver and San Diego (and possibly other legacy sites I haven't seen) have done their playing fields in the early 60's style.

[Gothamite]

not to mention all the silly pink accessories for breast cancer month.

Wow. Seriously? Hating on the throwbacks is one thing, but geez. I hope you were kidding.

I don't know if he is, but I'll say it: I don't like the pink accessories. I think they're a silly, showy gimmick, and a bad precedent to set.

[gingerbreadmann]

not to mention all the silly pink accessories for breast cancer month.

Wow. Seriously? Hating on the throwbacks is one thing, but geez. I hope you were kidding.

I don't know if he is, but I'll say it: I don't like the pink accessories. I think they're a silly, showy gimmick, and a dangerous precedent to set.

Agreed and I think saying you don't like the accessories is worlds away from saying you don't support breast cancer research, or worse, that you are opposed to it, as Unwind implies. I fully hope that Breast Cancer is conquered as soon as possible, but I think that 1) we are constantly overexposed to the specific cause of breast cancer, and 2) ridiculous accessories in various sports are not necessary to raise money or awareness. Two or three weeks ago, the first time they popped up, I thought it was a nice little gesture that I could put up with for the day (like pink bats on Mother's day in MLB), but the fact that they have not gone away is just irritating. This is totally over-the-top and I'm frankly kind of sick of it. I think it teeters a little close to being a sellout, and there are other causes besides breast cancer, which seems to far and away be the predominant cause you hear promotions and awareness campaigns for. (Though this is somewhat of a separate issue.) Drawing the conclusion that having this opinion or something close to it means the person expressing it is opposed to the support of the cause in general is preposterous, and I don't believe you don't have to just pretend to lovingly put up with every little charity gimmick because it's "for a good cause."

On the Patriots' throwbacks, I just wish the shoulder stripes matched the pants stripes (two spaces surrounding the middle stripe) as they did for a while. That would be awesome.

[Cujo]

not to mention all the silly pink accessories for breast cancer month.

Wow. Seriously? Hating on the throwbacks is one thing, but geez. I hope you were kidding.

I don't know if he is, but I'll say it: I don't like the pink accessories. I think they're a silly, showy gimmick, and a bad precedent to set.

Going pink for one day, as they do in MLB, is a nice gesture and does raise breast cancer awareness. However, doing this for an entire month is over-the-top and IMO waters down the NFL's cause quite a bit.

[RollWolfpack]

not to mention all the silly pink accessories for breast cancer month.

Wow. Seriously? Hating on the throwbacks is one thing, but geez. I hope you were kidding.

I don't know if he is, but I'll say it: I don't like the pink accessories. I think they're a silly, showy gimmick, and a bad precedent to set.

Going pink for one day, as they do in MLB, is a nice gesture and does raise breast cancer awareness. However, doing this for an entire month is over-the-top and IMO waters down the cause quite a bit.

I actually completely disagree with the idea that it "waters down the cause" by wearing pink throughout all of October instead of a 1-time event. I do like how MLB does it, yet with the NFL participating all month it drastically increases the number of times for the pink to be seen by anyone either during live viewing of the game, recaps of the game, or in the future in looking back at past games. And all of these instances combined just present opportunities for fans to relate the pink to the Breast Cancer support and research movement, hopefully causing for more action from fans and other people in society to donate more and hopefully help find a cure for this horrible disease as soon as possible.

[The_Admiral]

And all of these instances combined just present opportunities for fans to relate the pink to the Breast Cancer support and research movement, hopefully causing for [sic] more action from fans and other people in society to donate more and hopefully help find a cure for this horrible disease as soon as possible.

Let's be honest here, though. Thanks to some of the best marketing in the world, breast cancer awareness is at an all-time high. I don't think there are many people left who don't make the connection between pink ribbons and the Komen folks, and that's a very good thing, because yes, Unwind, I am not in favor of cancer. I'm not sure that football players wearing pink shoes and wristbands really accomplishes much. I'd be happy just presuming that these highly compensated athletes are donating generously. They don't need to accompany a real gesture by wearing some pink accessories, and athletes who haven't donated anything most certainly shouldn't be taking part in what becomes an empty gesture. I'm also not certain how many new people this brings into the fold. If it takes Percy Harvin wearing pink shoes to make you realize that breast cancer is an awful disease that needs to be eradicated and you should do what you can to help the cause, you're either really sheltered or really weird. What took so long? It came to this?

[IceCap]

I'm going to have to (mostly) agree.

Once a season, at the start of October? Sure, go ahead NFL. It's a worthy cause. The entire month though? That just screams "HEY LOOK AT US. WE CARE MORE THEN MLB!"

[crashcarson15]

I'm going to have to (mostly) agree.

Once a season, at the start of October? Sure, go ahead NFL. It's a worthy cause. The entire month though? That just screams "HEY LOOK AT US. WE CARE MORE THEN MLB!"

More like, hey! Look at that hat Ben Roethlisberger's wearing! I bet you want one! Here we go, we'll donate $2 to breast cancer research! And still make $20 off of you! Mwahahahahahaha

[TFoA]

Count me into the crowd of "I like that they're looking out for breast cancer, but a whole month? Seriously?"

It was great for that first week. Now it's turning into overkiill, & it's bad when that happens & you're trying to do something for charity.

[infrared41]

Truly, the epitome of a travesty.

Sports talk?

Follow the clues.

Canine's are us.

Might be rabid?

Nothing can get by him.

Minus a Mike.

But the Flintstones pet is here.

Up in the sky in outer space.

Winning numbers are 123 and 144.

A travesty I tell you.

Why not just say "Hey. I'm Chris Russo or I'm Dino Costa (or whatever Mad Dog Radio host you're claiming to be.) Check me out on Mad Dog Radio. Believe me, you could use the listeners. Why the big secret? Nice try dude. Not buying it.

I'll tell you what, if you want to prove it then tell me something only a radio insider would know. Feel free to use a PM. If you're legit I won't tell anyone who you are. Radio code of honor. Oh and good luck pulling listeners away from Ferrall.

Given that this guy (SPORTSDOCTOR) launched into the same misinformed rant on two different threads and has repeatedly shown his total lack of knowledge about the AFL throwbacks, I have no doubt that he is on sports talk radio...

Looks like the nationally syndicated SPORTSDOCTOR has disappeared. Is it because he was busted trying to pose as something he's not? Or is it because he really is Dino Costa and he's embarrassed by how much his show sucks. I tuned in to Dino Costa last night and I all I could think was "how in the hell did this hack get a national radio show?" It was so God-awful that it honestly made me want to come out of radio retirement.

[Gothamite]

I'm going to have to (mostly) agree.

Once a season, at the start of October? Sure, go ahead NFL. It's a worthy cause. The entire month though? That just screams "HEY LOOK AT US. WE CARE MORE THEN MLB!"

Exactly. This feels more about self-aggrandizement than it does actually caring about a cause.

Maybe the sentiment is genuine, or was when the idea was hatched. But you wouldn't know that from the way it played out on the field.

And are they going to do this every year now? Because if we stop selling pink ribbons - the cancer wins!

[TruColor]

OT: As horrific as breast cancer is - and it certainly needs our support - it's not even the number one cause of death for women. Heart disease is. How come there's no marketing for wiping out heart disease?

[leopard88]

OT: As horrific as breast cancer is - and it certainly needs our support - it's not even the number one cause of death for women. Heart disease is. How come there's no marketing for wiping out heart disease?

I say this in complete seriousness -- bad marketing by the heart disease people (especially compared to the work of the marketing wizards at Komen).

[Gothamite]

Yep. That's it in a nutshell.

[SmoothieX]

I fully hope that Breast Cancer is conquered as soon as possible, but I think that 1) we are constantly overexposed to the specific cause of breast cancer, and 2) ridiculous accessories in various sports are not necessary to raise money or awareness.

Right on man.

I've got a parent dying from a type of cancer no one outside the oncology field has generally heard of. How about some pub for some of the lesser known types, or other afflictions out there just as bad - heart diease, AIDS, parallysis, ALS, etc...

I don't see why they have to latch onto one and ride it for a whole month.

[powersurge]

not to mention all the silly pink accessories for breast cancer month.

Wow. Seriously? Hating on the throwbacks is one thing, but geez. I hope you were kidding.

I don't know if he is, but I'll say it: I don't like the pink accessories. I think they're a silly, showy gimmick, and a bad precedent to set.

One of the things that you and I definitely have in common. I also dislike huge unnecessary patches and logos for players or owners who have passed away. Its nothing that can't be displayed on a field. Don't get me started on the whole need to sing national anthems at sporting events.