NFL Weekly Uniform Notes

[infrared41]

The game is underway, Infrared... go ahead. Make it official.

In due time my friend. I want to watch the game. Believe it or not, it takes me a little while to put together the post that is my weekly list.

[Bmac]

I've officially fallen in love with the throwbacks. I used to be like meh, but I think they look so much better with outdoor lighting. Lord.

The purple looks so much better outside. Like, a ton better.

[Jezus_Ghoti]

I watched about 30 seconds of the Cards game. There was a CB wearing what appeared to be reversed socks. He seemed to have the red pulled down and white showing at the top. It actually looked very nice breaking up the leotard look.

Not sure I like it, but it's interesting. I think I prefer it to the leotard look, at least.

[IceCap]

These Vikings throwbacks, with the current helmets, would make for the perfect Vikings uniforms.

[infrared41]

A day late and a dollar short...

Infrared41's best and worst looking games of the week:

Best: Even though I'm ranking them, anyone of the top four could have been number one.

1. Bears - Vikings: No surprise here. I suppose the popular opinion is that the Vikings throwbacks are what put this game at the top of the list. Honestly, had they played it indoors it would have come in second. But the cold and the snow and the fact that the throwbacks looked so good outdoors put this one at the top. If only the Bears had worn all white and made this a true "throwback" game. Ice_Cap says use the current helmet with the throwbacks. I say match the throwback jerseys to the darker purple. That would look incredible.

2. Jets - Steelers: Two of the best looks in the NFL in an important late season game. This one reminded me of why I became an NFL fan in the first place all those years ago. An NFL Films game if there ever was one.

3. Packers - Patriots: Another great looking game.

4. Chiefs - Rams: A great helmet match-up. I know I'm in the minority but I think the Chiefs look great in all white.

5. Eagles - Giants: If only the Eagles had worn all white. Still a great looking game.

6. Lions - Bucs: The Bucs finally go with the red & pewter. It's about time. It looks great. The Lions are a shoulder stripe and a better font from looking really great themselves. I like their roads better than the home unis. The "font for font's sake" seems to work better on a white jersey.

Worst: Just one this week.

1. Saints - Ravens: It's bad enough that the Saints continue to ruin a great look with those awful black pants. Add in the Ravens channeling their inner Miami Sharks and it's an aesthetic disaster.

That's it for this week. Thanks for tuning in.

[BrandMooreArt]

everything looks better outdoors. always

Red, i dont believe you've mentioned a Colts game this year one way or the other have you? what up with that?

[infrared41]

everything looks better outdoors. always

Red, i dont believe you've mentioned a Colts game this year one way or the other have you? what up with that?

Sure I have. They made the best list when they played the Patriots. I'd wager pretty heavily that the Colts will be very high on next week's list. They're playing the Raiders this Sunday. My guess is that game will get the top spot. The Colts have one of the best uniforms in the NFL. They've just been playing some ugly teams of late.

Here they are from week 11...

It's that time again kids... And now without further adieu it's this week's episode of... yeah, you know what? I'm not giving him the attention anymore.

Here are my picks for best and worst looking games of the week.

This week's best:

2b. Colts - Patriots: Speaking of great match ups between modern and traditional, here's another one. Like Tampa Bay, New England did a damned fine job of "updating" themselves. You'd think teams like Arizona, Cincinnati, Minnesota, etc. could have followed the example set by the Bucs and Pats. Instead they decided clown suits were the way to go.

[BrandMooreArt]

ah, i must have missed week 11's. agreed, their majority of opponents have been subpar on the uni front. i wouldnt be mad if every Jaguar game made your worst list

[infrared41]

ah, i must have missed week 11's. agreed, their majority of opponents have been subpar on the uni front. i wouldnt be mad if every Jaguar game made your worst list

The Jaguars are in a unique position when it comes to my weekly list. Their uniforms, while far from good, aren't exactly clown suit awful like Cincy or Minnesota etc. So they aren't bad enough to make a worst list and they'll never make a best list. They're just sort of there. Blandness perfected I guess.

[Lights Out]

I'm surprised you actually like those Pats uniforms, infrared. I think they're just as bad as the Bills' set - ridiculous piping, side panels that don't match the pants stripes, and a hideous font. Easily one of the worst sets in the league, IMO, and totally worthy of the title of "clown suit."

[Cujo]

Vikings throwbacks vs Anyone over Chargers-Niners is an absolute travesty! .... Or maybe I just have bad taste.

[TalktoChuck]

I'm surprised you actually like those Pats uniforms, infrared. I think they're just as bad as the Bills' set - ridiculous piping, side panels that don't match the pants stripes, and a hideous font. Easily one of the worst sets in the league, IMO, and totally worthy of the title of "clown suit."

Actually they do. On the home uniform (Blue top/Silver pants) the side panel stripes red/blue (color of jersey)/red just like the pants. And then for the away uniform (white top/blue pants) the side panel stripes are white(color of jersey)/red/blue/red/white just like the pants.

[Lights Out]

@Cujo: Agreed. I think the Chargers' powder blues are the best uniforms in the league right now.

*cue Ice_Cap complaining about the sleeve and pant bolts and the font*

@TalktoChuck: The jersey piping on both is thinner than the outlines on the pants stripes. The side panels therefore look a bit wider than the pants stripes. Regardless, it's a hideous mishmash.

[Sport]

I'm surprised you actually like those Pats uniforms, infrared. I think they're just as bad as the Bills' set - ridiculous piping, side panels that don't match the pants stripes, and a hideous font. Easily one of the worst sets in the league, IMO, and totally worthy of the title of "clown suit."

Actually they do. On the home uniform (Blue top/Silver pants) the side panel stripes red/blue (color of jersey)/red just like the pants. And then for the away uniform (white top/blue pants) the side panel stripes are white(color of jersey)/red/blue/red/white just like the pants.

In theory they match up, but the red on the pants is a thicker stripe while the jersey uses piping. The red stripe on the jersey is much thinner than the red stripe on the pants, and that has always bothered me about their uniforms. That, and they're really generic. There's nothing about the striping, shoulder taper, side panels that says "Patriots" to me. Their template would work for any team in football.

[oldschoolvikings]

I'm surprised you actually like those Pats uniforms, infrared. I think they're just as bad as the Bills' set - ridiculous piping, side panels that don't match the pants stripes, and a hideous font. Easily one of the worst sets in the league, IMO, and totally worthy of the title of "clown suit."

Actually they do. On the home uniform (Blue top/Silver pants) the side panel stripes red/blue (color of jersey)/red just like the pants. And then for the away uniform (white top/blue pants) the side panel stripes are white(color of jersey)/red/blue/red/white just like the pants.

In theory they match up, but the red on the pants is a thicker stripe while the jersey uses piping. The red stripe on the jersey is much thinner than the red stripe on the pants, and that has always bothered me about their uniforms. That, and they're really generic. There's nothing about the striping, shoulder taper, side panels that says "Patriots" to me. Their template would work for any team in football.

I think the "shoulder taper" is suposed to remind you of the shape of the logo.

[IceCap]

The Patriots have one of the best modern sets in the league. The style is progressive, yet not a jumble of piping and panels. Those elements are there, but unlike the Bills' uniforms they're restrained and well done. The number font is custom and unique, but unlike the Chargers' numbers it's well designed. The best part? They use real striping on the pants. Not piped and tapered nonsense, actual stripes. Yeah, they don't match up to the jersey's side panels exactly, but it's a much better effort then, say, Buffalo.

Those Buffalo uniforms, on the other feature....

An unnecessary double blue and nickel.

Pants stripes that do a worse time matching the side panels then the Patriots' attempt.

Unnecessarily different number designs for the road look.

The unitard look.

One of the most crammed helmet striping patterns I've ever seen.

Comparing the Patriots' uniforms to the Bills' is absurd. The Patriots' look is modern done right. The Bills' look is the prototypical clown suit that results from designing a uniform to appease the latest "hot" fashion trends.

[SmoothieX]

I'm a Pats nut, and I hate their current unis. I just want them to keep winning though, they could be wearing pink chicken suits next week, and if they wrap up home field I'll love it and make the keyboard all sticky again.

[Lights Out]

What's more annoying: dennisbergan's Cowboys uniform updates, or SmoothieX's masturbation updates?

[leopard88]

I know infrared won't like this (and I'm not even sure how I feel about it), but, according to the Ravens website . . .

All-Black Uniforms Could Come Again

It had been three years since the Ravens wore both black jerseys and black pants, as the arrival of Head Coach John Harbaugh in 2008 coincided with a pairing of white pants with the alternate tops.

But after breaking out the dress formals last weekend in a convincing 30-24 win over the New Orleans Saints, improving their record in the dark uniforms to 4-2, the all-blacks could come out again next season.

Judging by feedback on Twitter, message boards and sports talk radio, that?s good news to Ravens fans.

?We could see them again,? said Harbaugh with a laugh. ?We?ll see. But it?s great that the fans are excited about our different looks. We?ve got some pretty great combinations.?

The Ravens have worn the black jerseys twice this year, but a Week 12 victory against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers featured the white bottoms.

Harbaugh said wideout Derrick Mason and safety Ed Reed, among others, wanted to hold off wearing black pants with the third jersey until December.

That is also why the Ravens adopted the purple jersey/black pants look for their Dec. 5 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at M&T Bank Stadium.

?The players have feedback into what we?re wearing, and some of the guys wanted them as a December thing,? Harbaugh said of the all-black uniforms.

Teams must submit what color jersey they will wear for each home game long before the regular-season starts.

[tBBP]

I've spoken my mind about the Patriots' uniforms before, but I'll do it again since we're back on this topic: they're a perfect hodgepodge of several different uniform elements, both "traditional" and "modern", mashed together to create a complete conglomerate of clusterfkcuedupness. It's really more apparent in the road uniforms, though.

You see where we have the shoulder swooshes, evocative of the previous era's flying shoulder elvii. We have colored sidepanels (on the road jerseys), trimmed by piping. The red trim on the pants striping is uneven with said jersey piping. We have triple-striped white socks which match with exactly nothing else in the uniform, home or road. I don't mind the number font at all--in fact, I actually kind of like it--but the darkening of blue to navy was in line with a trend at the time (see Broncos, Rams). Not to mention in road guise, the silver helmet matches with, well, nothing again (an issue which could be rectified if they could ever just attempt wearing the silver pants on the road, in which case they probably wouldn't even need the striped white socks that match with nothing else on the uniform).

Combine all that together, and well, yeah, the home version may look better, but overall as a package, it was just overdone.

(Though not to the degree of either the Vikings or Cardinals...or Bills.)