Landors alternate NFL proposal

[BrandMooreArt]

http://www.behance.net/gallery/NFL-Post-Season/1004165

check it out on the Behance network.

[neo_prankster]

I like the flaming star.

[DeFrank]

Really liking the first batch of ideas. Really creative and powerful like the NFL is.

[altosax29b]

At the bottom of the screen there is a logo for Super Bowl XLVIII that says "Arizona" in it...even though Super Bowl 48 is going to be at the New Meadowlands Stadium.

[arkansasdolfan]

I would have liked to see the logos for XLVI-XLIX in the first style to see if it would continue the unique styles of the lower proposal or the regimented designs of the accepted one.

A couple of things that I love about the lower proposal. Of course, the I love that the Super Bowl logos are unique every year (even if a couple are quite weak, ala Indy). My favorite was certainly New Orleans, but I think the Dallas logo for this past year is more in line with what we were all expecting to see (star representing texas with red and blue colors). That should have been the direction that they went in, IMHO.

I think both sets of playoff logos were great, but the flame motif was surprising and refreshingly original, especially with in being incorporated into five different SB logos.

I'm sure most will disagree, but I think the NFL made the wrong choice on this one.

[oo_nrb]

Wait, so we could've had those instead of the giant grey gradient phallus? Ugh... I used to hate the "No Fun League" moniker, but I'm getting more and more used to saying it...

[BBTV]

Seriously? Only two concepts showed up for me (random geometric shapes and flaming ball) but both of them would have been mocked to death if they were released as the real thing... especially the geometric one. I know people will post "no way, they rock!" but I have no doubt that there would have been a hundred posts asking what random shapes have to do with football, how it represents the host city or that it's a "championship", how silly it looks as a patch, etc. The flaming ball may have been mocked even worse.

[Viper]

Yeah, the geometric concept screamed "late 1980s/early '90s" to me. The flaming concept was kind of cool, but not exactly timeless either; I probably would have gotten tired of it after a season or two.

[BrandMooreArt]

At the bottom of the screen there is a logo for Super Bowl XLVIII that says "Arizona" in it...even though Super Bowl 48 is going to be at the New Meadowlands Stadium.

its just there as part of the concept, these were put together about 2 years ago im guessing, so they didnt know which cities would be hosting that far into the future

my thoughts on both proposals is that i like them both better than what is currently being used. at least this designer used color and kept some personality to the logos. still, its pretty weak, at least for NFL standards. Landor is one of the biggest and best branding agencies around, but like others who dont specialize in sports, they often miss the mark. same with Pentagram and the BIG10 or the agency that designed the Jaguars uniforms. sports branding is just a different animal than they are used to dealing with. the Super Bowl or a profesional team can not be treated like an upscale hipster coffe shop

[RETROJR79]

Those SuperBowl logo are wayyyyy better than the generic new logo.

[CC97]

Seriously? Only two concepts showed up for me (random geometric shapes and flaming ball) but both of them would have been mocked to death if they were released as the real thing... especially the geometric one. I know people will post "no way, they rock!" but I have no doubt that there would have been a hundred posts asking what random shapes have to do with football, how it represents the host city or that it's a "championship", how silly it looks as a patch, etc. The flaming ball may have been mocked even worse.

Thank you. These are horrible compared to what they went with

[andrewharrington]

At the bottom of the screen there is a logo for Super Bowl XLVIII that says "Arizona" in it...even though Super Bowl 48 is going to be at the New Meadowlands Stadium.

its just there as part of the concept, these were put together about 2 years ago im guessing, so they didnt know which cities would be hosting that far into the future

my thoughts on both proposals is that i like them both better than what is currently being used. at least this designer used color and kept some personality to the logos. still, its pretty weak, at least for NFL standards. Landor is one of the biggest and best branding agencies around, but like others who dont specialize in sports, they often miss the mark. same with Pentagram and the BIG10 or the agency that designed the Jaguars uniforms. sports branding is just a different animal than they are used to dealing with. the Super Bowl or a profesional team can not be treated like an upscale hipster coffe shop

It's really the clients (the NFL, the Big Ten, the Jaguars) who should be accountable for missing the mark, as their written brief and decisions drive the design direction for projects like this. Landor could have shown up with ten great proposals, but if the NFL comes back with, "Well, we were really hoping the trophy could be the main element of the logos." then there's really nothing Landor can do about it except make that bad idea look as good as it possibly can (once again, subject to the clients critique).

I actually like certain parts of both of these systems. The first one has a great energy about it, similar to how NFL media was executed in the 1960s and 1970s when David Boss was running NFL Properties. The flat, colored shapes are pretty indicative of that time period, which was regarded as the NFL's golden era. It resonates like this type of image for me, while at the same time looking pretty modern and premium.

The concept of the different Super Bowl logos all fitting the same aesthetic in the second proposal is also really nice, though I'm really not a fan of the flaming ball or star. The look of that proposal is also iconic and sort of 60s/70s vintage fused with modern and premium.

Both of those would have been preferred, at least by me, but I can also tell that a ton of people wouldn't have been happy about it no matter what they chose.

Side note: The way people are able to instantly react to these types of things nowadays is really strange and unique to this era. Great design goes largely unnoticed, while all the buzz and chatter is focused on the 'poor' work. People rely a bit too much on what they are taught when critiquing design work, in my opinion, and they are never able to open their mind to offer a genuine evaluation, and it always comes off as very negative. If it breaks a rule you were taught in typography class, it's crap. If it looks like something else, it's crap. If it has gradients, it's crap. A lot of it has to do with the quality of the teaching along with the accessibility and trendiness of design flooding the industry with sub-par talent. Nine times out of ten, I'd rather have a decent designer who gives open-minded and thoughtful critique than a great designer who spouts off about how much everything sucks becaus it doesn't align with his vision and how it doesn't follow the rules he was taught.

[BrandMooreArt]

It's really the clients (the NFL, the Big Ten, the Jaguars) who should be accountable for missing the mark, as their written brief and decisions drive the design direction for projects like this. Landor could have shown up with ten great proposals, but if the NFL comes back with, "Well, we were really hoping the trophy could be the main element of the logos." then there's really nothing Landor can do about it except make that bad idea look as good as it possibly can (once again, subject to the clients critique).

that is a good point. as one of my instructors used to say "it takes a great client to make great design". still, im not impressed with any of the concepts/deliverables i have seen from Landor for the NFL post season. their past Super Bowl logos i think are great. im just not sure how they and/or the NFL fell short on the post season system

[Gothamite]

The current logo system is looking better and better.

[andrewharrington]

The current logo system is looking better and better.

At least the other proposals left open the possibility for something creative saving the look of the Super Bowl L logo.

[Mings]

You know, adding a host team color to the Super Bowl (or a regional color) logo and adding red and blue to the AFC and NFC logos would take the currents up another step. Thats what I like about the proposals seen here. But overall, they went the right way.

[Gothamite]

The current logo system is looking better and better.

At least the other proposals left open the possibility for something creative saving the look of the Super Bowl L logo.

Something ugly.

Besides, the current system will work just fine for Super Bowl XLX.

[HawkeyHouse]

I approve!

[IceCap]

I like the random geometric shape one. It has a very neat abstractness/old school thing going on.

[hawk36]

I love the alternate thinking here. Pro sports in general have become much too homogenous. OK, safe design rules the sports world. At some point, someone has to break the mold. While I wouldn't say this is "it", I applaud someone thinking in a different vein.