NIKE NFL Uniforms

[29texan]

Boy...I sho' didn't expect all this...and had I known that sharing my grunt-hardened skeptical opinion of seemingly arbitrary percentage figures would've led to all this, I'd have just kept it to myself. My bad, y'all.

So to help make it up to y'all, here's a picture (that's actually half-appropriate in the sense of opinions)...

..... I gotta take a shower.

[illini1]

Wow...just imagine if he'd been in a Nike uniform.

Yeah, somehow they managed to get it done in long-sleeved Durene.

Yeah, but everyone else also had the same long sleeve heavy jerseys. Wouldn't you prefer to see every athlete at the best physical output they can deliver?

Well, I'm pretty sure we did with Jim Brown. How many more yards would he have had in a Pro Combat uni? My guess is zero or pretty close. What's made the difference between then and now is not uniforms, it's guys not smoking (no, really, there are locker room shots of players puffing away back then), year-round conditioning (and better techniques), better understanding of nutrition, weight training (not everybody did it then), hydration (used to be players were "soft" if they needed water) and so on. Sure, the unis are lighter and more comfortable and that contributes to better performance, but that contribution is very, very tiny, so much so it hardly belongs in the conversation. As many others have said, most of the perception that better unis are a big deal is marketing.

What's also amusing is that those long sleeves protected the elbow area. Now guys have no sleeves but put all kinds of crap on the arms to do the same thing.

I blame the NFL for the disappearing sleeves. They are totalitarian with every other aspect of the uniforms. If you show too much or not enough white on your socks you get fined. Why don't they tell players that they can't alter the sleeves? If not that, then make the players wear undersleeves that go down to the elbow. They could put the stripes on the undershirts.

[joegalvan]

for workouts/etc, i prefer Nike Elite Socks. the Player issued NBA socks (grey toe) are super comfy as well, but are hard to come by. Under Armour are okay, but i dont like the feel of the materials as much after a few washes.

not a fan of Thorlo's. for any rigorous sports activity, i would not recommend them. they are overly cushioned to compensate for the lack of technology previously available in sneakers. for walking (or long hours at work), they are okay. even then, the materials are dated and dont breathe very well. absolute hell in Texas.

tons of older folks swear by them. they refuse to buy a pair of $80 sneakers, but throw a $20 orthodic and $18 thorlos in a pair of cheap walkers.

ThorloLite's are solid. the Micro Mini is my personal favorite. its about the farthest thing from a traditional Thorlo they offer.

strange tangent... welcome to SockWatch.

[BrandMooreArt]

Wow...just imagine if he'd been in a Nike uniform.

Yeah, somehow they managed to get it done in long-sleeved Durene.

Yeah, but everyone else also had the same long sleeve heavy jerseys. Wouldn't you prefer to see every athlete at the best physical output they can deliver?

yea, i'm not following how thats being disputed. having better equipment is a good thing.

[JQK]

Then why not just play nude like the ancient Greeks? Nothing to grab (well, almost nothing), nothing weighing you down. Seems the perfect way to go!

[oldschoolvikings]

Wow...just imagine if he'd been in a Nike uniform.

Yeah, somehow they managed to get it done in long-sleeved Durene.

Yeah, but everyone else also had the same long sleeve heavy jerseys. Wouldn't you prefer to see every athlete at the best physical output they can deliver?

yea, i'm not following how thats being disputed. having better equipment is a good thing.

Remember the Raiders' DBs from the 80's wearing all the stickum? That was "equipment" that inhanced their playing ability. The NFL outlawed it... they could've just let anybody wear it that wanted to (fair is fair) but my guess is they said no for as much aesthetic reason as any other. Those guys looked disgusting by halftime.

I can't say I've ever sat around watching the game wishing for a higher "physical output." As far as equipment goes, all I care about is an even playing field. Mandating mid-bicep length sleeves (tight or loose, depending on player preference) could be seen as a safety issue (keeps the shoulder pads in better) on par with the knee and thigh pad rules coming up, and, if everyone is wearing the same sleeve there really isn't anything to complain about... Team A's receivers can't be held or restricted any more or less that Team B's (assuming that's really even a concern).

[Billy B]

Yeah, they'd be on an even playing field, but why would you want to see guys grabbed and held illegally? The last thing the NFL wants is for their receivers to get held up and slowed down. In addition to the players not wanting to be slowed down illegally, the majority are more comfortable in what they're wearing now. Maybe you don't care if the game is slowed down a little bit, but a lot of people want to see the biggest, fastest, and strongest players out there.

The stickum is an entirely different issue. That's using something foreign that gives the players wearing it an unfair advantage. All that improved fabrics and cuts of uniforms due is try to limit how much players are slowed down by their required equipment.

[ARTnSocal]

I blame the NFL for the disappearing sleeves. They are totalitarian with every other aspect of the uniforms. If you show too much or not enough white on your socks you get fined. Why don't they tell players that they can't alter the sleeves? If not that, then make the players wear undersleeves that go down to the elbow. They could put the stripes on the undershirts.

.

I have long been saying the exact same thing, repeatedly ...

The current-day sleeves are short enough as is, they've gotta be left alone. The equipment managers should be banned from shortening or tailoring them any shorter than they already are. I don't understand why the NFL allows this ...

Players shouldn't even be allowed to tuck any part of the sleeves underneath and tape them under the shoulder pads like many of them do. I had never noticed this done before until the very early 90s when Bruce Smith did it ... they I began to take notice that it became a trend.

The older jerseys with the stripes & numbers on the sleeves, and without numbers on the shoulders when they were mostly all on the sleeves look so much better IMO. I'm not saying go back to that, because with the shorter sleeves you can't fit the logo or stripes on the sleeves without having the numbers moved up to the shoulders.

I just wish they'd make it a rule where the shorter sleeves of today cannot be altered any further.

[IceCap]

Wow...just imagine if he'd been in a Nike uniform.

Yeah, somehow they managed to get it done in long-sleeved Durene.

Yeah, but everyone else also had the same long sleeve heavy jerseys. Wouldn't you prefer to see every athlete at the best physical output they can deliver?

yea, i'm not following how thats being disputed. having better equipment is a good thing.

In 2006 Nike released its line of Swift hockey sweaters. Like the Reebok Edge sweaters they were supposed to make players lighter, allow them to skate faster, and keep them drier. Like with the Pro Combat and Speed Machine football uniforms Nike backed these claims up with statistics.

The first test of the new technology was the 2006 Winter Olympic ice hockey tournament.

Most teams participated. Sweden, however, did not. Yet they, wearing their old baggy, sweaty sweaters won gold.

It kind of shoots down the theory that these types of uniforms help boost performance when all else is equall.

[Sodboy13]

IIRC, the other non-Swift team, Switzerland, made a surprise run to the semifinals in that tourney, as well.

[andrewharrington]

for workouts/etc, i prefer Nike Elite Socks. the Player issued NBA socks (grey toe) are super comfy as well, but are hard to come by. Under Armour are okay, but i dont like the feel of the materials as much after a few washes.

not a fan of Thorlo's. for any rigorous sports activity, i would not recommend them. they are overly cushioned to compensate for the lack of technology previously available in sneakers. for walking (or long hours at work), they are okay. even then, the materials are dated and dont breathe very well. absolute hell in Texas.

tons of older folks swear by them. they refuse to buy a pair of $80 sneakers, but throw a $20 orthodic and $18 thorlos in a pair of cheap walkers.

ThorloLite's are solid. the Micro Mini is my personal favorite. its about the farthest thing from a traditional Thorlo they offer.

strange tangent... welcome to SockWatch.

Interesting. I used to swear by 'performance socks', but all my sport-related foot problems went away as soon as I started wearing Thorlos. Every time I wear something else, I seem to end up with a blister or hotspot. I had to start buying a half-size up in shoes, though.

Wow...just imagine if he'd been in a Nike uniform.

Yeah, somehow they managed to get it done in long-sleeved Durene.

Yeah, but everyone else also had the same long sleeve heavy jerseys. Wouldn't you prefer to see every athlete at the best physical output they can deliver?

yea, i'm not following how thats being disputed. having better equipment is a good thing.

Remember the Raiders' DBs from the 80's wearing all the stickum? That was "equipment" that inhanced their playing ability. The NFL outlawed it... they could've just let anybody wear it that wanted to (fair is fair) but my guess is they said no for as much aesthetic reason as any other. Those guys looked disgusting by halftime.

I can't say I've ever sat around watching the game wishing for a higher "physical output." As far as equipment goes, all I care about is an even playing field. Mandating mid-bicep length sleeves (tight or loose, depending on player preference) could be seen as a safety issue (keeps the shoulder pads in better) on par with the knee and thigh pad rules coming up, and, if everyone is wearing the same sleeve there really isn't anything to complain about... Team A's receivers can't be held or restricted any more or less that Team B's (assuming that's really even a concern).

Honestly I don't think holding or grabbing would be an issue. If you look at the photo of Jim Brown here, you can see the sleeve is tight. If you use a comfortable, moisture-wicking stretch fabric for the sleeve, you maintain that no-grab, snug fit, but make it much more mobile of a garment than what they wore in the 1960s. It's tough to grab a sleeve that's snug against the skin down to the elbow, whereas it seems pretty easy to hook onto the gaping armholes of the sleeveless jerseys we have today.

[in 2006 Nike released its line of Swift hockey sweaters. Like the Reebok Edge sweaters they were supposed to make players lighter, allow them to skate faster, and keep them drier. Like with the Pro Combat and Speed Machine football uniforms Nike backed these claims up with statistics.

The first test of the new technology was the 2006 Winter Olympic ice hockey tournament.

Most teams participated. Sweden, however, did not. Yet they, wearing their old baggy, sweaty sweaters won gold.

It kind of shoots down the theory that these types of uniforms help boost performance when all else is equall.

Maybe the Swedish were just a better hockey team to being with, which would mean all else was not equal. They probably would have scored a lot more goals if they were wearing the Swift.

[Sport]

Wow...just imagine if he'd been in a Nike uniform.

Yeah, somehow they managed to get it done in long-sleeved Durene.

Yeah, but everyone else also had the same long sleeve heavy jerseys. Wouldn't you prefer to see every athlete at the best physical output they can deliver?

yea, i'm not following how thats being disputed. having better equipment is a good thing.

In 2006 Nike released its line of Swift hockey sweaters. Like the Reebok Edge sweaters they were supposed to make players lighter, allow them to skate faster, and keep them drier. Like with the Pro Combat and Speed Machine football uniforms Nike backed these claims up with statistics.

The first test of the new technology was the 2006 Winter Olympic ice hockey tournament.

Most teams participated. Sweden, however, did not. Yet they, wearing their old baggy, sweaty sweaters won gold.

It kind of shoots down the theory that these types of uniforms help boost performance when all else is equall.

I think it's high time Disney made a movie about that 2006 Swedish Olympic team. "With jerseys and socks 4% heavier than their opponents, the Swedes battled through adversity and unfair advantages to claim Olympic gold. This Christmas, 'Miracle 2'."

[BlueSky]

Wow...just imagine if he'd been in a Nike uniform.

Yeah, somehow they managed to get it done in long-sleeved Durene.

Yeah, but everyone else also had the same long sleeve heavy jerseys. Wouldn't you prefer to see every athlete at the best physical output they can deliver?

yea, i'm not following how thats being disputed. having better equipment is a good thing.

It's not being disputed. I and others are simply making the point that its relevance is completely overblown, especially by Nike et al., who have a monetary stake in making people believe they can perform better simply by wearing (fill in athletic company)'s gear.

[ksupilot]

Browns wearing their Brown jerseys at home. There's something we haven't seen in awhile!

[nuordr]

Man, it sure is nice to see the Browns actually wear BROWN!

The Buccaneers Pewter pants look great. I was worried that Nike would mess that beautiful look up.

The Seattle greyis not as bad as I thought it would be, but then again anything is better than white on white.

[phutmasterflex]

Looking a the Seahawks right now wearing the gray pants, I'm not sure if I like it or not. I feel so indifferent about it. It's different from what we've seen for the past decade, but it doesn't stand out to me though as something that's amazing either

[Billy B]

Wow...just imagine if he'd been in a Nike uniform.

Yeah, somehow they managed to get it done in long-sleeved Durene.

Yeah, but everyone else also had the same long sleeve heavy jerseys. Wouldn't you prefer to see every athlete at the best physical output they can deliver?

yea, i'm not following how thats being disputed. having better equipment is a good thing.

In 2006 Nike released its line of Swift hockey sweaters. Like the Reebok Edge sweaters they were supposed to make players lighter, allow them to skate faster, and keep them drier. Like with the Pro Combat and Speed Machine football uniforms Nike backed these claims up with statistics.

The first test of the new technology was the 2006 Winter Olympic ice hockey tournament.

Most teams participated. Sweden, however, did not. Yet they, wearing their old baggy, sweaty sweaters won gold.

It kind of shoots down the theory that these types of uniforms help boost performance when all else is equall.

Except all else wasn't equal and Sweden was just the best hockey team that tournament. I don't think I've seen anyone in this thread argue that the performance benefits in a uniform were so much that you would be able to easily tell a difference, especially one as big as winning an entire tournament. The biggest difference is in how comfortable the player is which goes together with how they perceive any difference in their head.

[ksupilot]

This may be a stupid question, but is the Browns helmet stripe brown or black? I thought it was dark brown, but then on color werx it lists black for the helmet graphic.

[Chawls]

The Seattle grey is not as bad as I thought it would be, but then again anything is better than white on white.

The grey is too light but T.O. looks great with the white shoes.

[ARTnSocal]

Man, it sure is nice to see the Browns actually wear BROWN!

The Buccaneers Pewter pants look great. I was worried that Nike would mess that beautiful look up.

The Seattle grey is not as bad as I thought it would be, but then again anything is better than white on white.

I saw Seattle in the gray away pants on the Live 'Look In' on NFL Network .... real nice.

Looks MUCH BETTER than last week with the navy away pants and those upper-navy socks. If they wear the navy blue pants those upper-navy socks have got to go.

Good to see Cleveland in the brown jerseys again .... and they have the Flywire collar without having the toilet-seat look, something that alot of other clubs (including my own) should have insisted on.