.

[oldschoolvikings]

Also, player feedback? Have you had any instances where an elite NFL player gets invovled in the design process with your design team? If so is the input considered or is it more lip service just so their voices are heard. I know we did this a few times while I was at the NBA. The team would want a star player to have their input considered but typically it was so off mark we'd just nod and then design how we saw fit.

Anybody surprised by this?

[NeverSayNever]

The team would want a star player to have their input considered but typically it was so off mark we'd just nod and then design how we saw fit.

And of course, the same would be true with owners wives... who would be brought in for their "opinions" and we'd have to listen interntly. After the meeting would end the team marketing exec would bring us over and remind us that the owner just wanted to make sure their spouse was heard, but you are the experts and design the best look possible. Happened all the time. The politics of team branding.

[oldschoolvikings]

Yeah, I'm not the least bit surprised by this. You can see what happens in college, where because of recruiting concerns, the players opinions are actually taken into account and acted upon. How many youtube videos have we seen of a team reacting to the locker room unvieling of some horrific design as though they've just been offered free sex?

At the pro level, there's really no reason for anyone to have to pretend that a person's ability to throw a ball, catch a ball, or shoot a 3 pointer makes their aesthetic judgment worth more than a polite nod.

I've said in posts numerous times... the quickest way to tell that a soon-to-be-unvieled uniform will suck hugely is the phrase "the players have seen them, and they are very excited"

[shaydre1019]

I have a question regarding the sleeves on the nfl jerseys it appears that teams like the cowboys have screen printed stripes on the sleeves but teams like the steelers appear to have sublimated stripes.

Is this correct? And if so, who decides what treatment a team gets and is there a reason why?

[Kevin W.]

I've said in posts numerous times... the quickest way to tell that a soon-to-be-unvieled uniform will suck hugely is the phrase "the players have seen them, and they are very excited"

I'd say this is correct 99 times out of 100.

[BrandMooreArt]

I've said in posts numerous times... the quickest way to tell that a soon-to-be-unvieled uniform will suck hugely is the phrase "the players have seen them, and they are very excited"

I'd say this is correct 99 times out of 100.

when are people/players NOT excited by a new uniform? i wouldnt take anyones reaction as a measure of quality in design.

[gordie_delini]

Well since a few more questions have been asked, I'll pop back in here.

MattMillone: Usually the designer working on the uniform isn't directly involved with the pitch, but it depends. It's slightly different on the college side versuse the NFL since the people involved are different. Generally when a design isn't well received, it's back to the drawing board with whatever feedback the client has. It's just like any regular design brief or design job. It just so happens that what we're designing is uniforms and our clients are the NFL and college football teams. We try very hard to bend over backwards to meet the demands of our clients, so that's generally what happens when something isn't liked.

TheStoicPaisano: Yes, Nike Sportswear is generally in charge of one-off special items like the letterman jackets. That's not something handled by the football group. They do on-field uniforms, sideline apparel, training apparel, and equipment.

Tubby34: I can't speak about when Nike owened Bauer, but based on the relationships we currently have with Converse, Cole Haan, and Umbro, I imagine Bauer was still doing this it's own way, just with the Nike label over it. I don't know because Bauer was sold well before I started at the swoosh. Can't speak about any future developments.

NeverSayNever: Hi Tom, good to have you chime in. I'm not entirely certain about all the prototype testing that happens - that's not generally our department, but my understanding is that there are certain rules to comply with for the NFL regarding TV numbers and the like. I just don't know what they are specifically. I had a limited involvement with the NFL design group as I was mainly focused on NCAA football. Typically though any issues found on a jersey are relayed back to us from the team or league and then we make those changes and update the uniforms if need be. As far as player feedback goes, we usually don't have NFL players involved in that process. It's usually the league and the team owners with no input from players. Tech may get input from athletes, but in general those athletes are not NFL players to my knowledge. I don't really know to be honest. We DO however get a large amount of input from athletes when we do a player-specific brand such as Kevin Durant, LeBron James, etc. And no, we don't pay them lip service at all. We take their input very seriously - it's all about them and who they are. When it comes to player input on uniforms, we DO take a lot of their feedback into our consideration. For example, we've had Oregon players involved in the process of designing their uniforms. We take that input seriously as well, though at the end of the day we're the design professionals, so it's not that we're paying lip service, just deferring to our expert knowledge and opinions. There's also a lot of people to consider in the process, so the player input isn't always the final say. Does that make sense?

Shaydre1019: Currently the fabric we use on the uniforms doesn't support sublimation, so all sleeve graphics are either screen printed, twill, or inset fabric.

[BBTV]

I have a question regarding the sleeves on the nfl jerseys it appears that teams like the cowboys have screen printed stripes on the sleeves but teams like the steelers appear to have sublimated stripes.

Is this correct? And if so, who decides what treatment a team gets and is there a reason why?

You may find your answer here.

[TheOldRoman]

The Lions have also used the woven, durene-like material on their sleeves since they did the revamp. It was more noticeable last year because the jersey shoulders still used the dazzle mesh fabric.

[zitie]

Spam

[gordie_delini]

Mods, can we get the effin' spammer out of here please?

[gdu]

here is a new college uniform on the speed machine template with longer shoulder stripes:

[gordie_delini]

Yep, that's it. I've had to hold back through this whole discussion before that was unveiled. Not easy when I knew this solution existed and can't say anything about it. This will be available going forward to other teams. Whether or not they'll adopt it is another matter entirely.

[TornadoGTS]

Was there any particular reason as to why green was so minimized on the white and grey Seahawks sets? What are your personal thoughts on their new sets in regards to the design and the color distrubution?

I know you guys wont necessarily change things for the Seahawks since its so new, but just wanted to throw it out there anyways because I've heard many people mention it, but what if the crown/wing (I dont know what you guys call it) motif/pattern on the pants and collar was consistent throughout the set, with the crowns/wings always being green with the background stripe being blue. So on the white and grey sets, it would be the same current stripe but the pattern would be filled in with green, and on the blue set, you would just reverse the pattern and stripe. I think that would be a nice way to incorporate more green into the white and grey sets which are predominantly blue. That in itself I think would be a huge improvement, but I would even take it a step further and make the little insert green where the Nike logo is located (and make the Nike logo navy). Also, I would thicken up the pants stripe to the same width as the chest/shoulder stripes

My mockups of said changes.....

[debo0775]

Considering that jersey, gordie, is it fair to say that NFL teams have made decisions to go with an "inferior" look when Nike (or Reebok perhaps) provided an alternative solution which, to many, would be viewed as favorable?

[gordie_delini]

TornadoGTS: I can't speak to the Seahawks since that was done before I got to Nike, but my guess would be that is was a league or team decision to minimize those colors.

debo0775: I don't know that I'd call it "inferior" necessarily, but often times yes a team will choose an option that's not the preferred or proposed concept from the design team. But honestly that happens in any design situation anywhere. It's one of the most commonly misunderstood aspects about the design industry — the clients are the ones making the final choices, not the designers.

[TheOldRoman]

I don't like that LSU, one of the last teams to use a traditional football template, is going with the speed machine or whatever this one is called. Either way, that looks pretty close to the mock-ups I did for the Colts and Jets. It might not look ideal for LSU due to the stripes touching the cuff stripes, but I think it would be a big improvement for either of those teams if they decide to go with that template next year. Ok, Adidas. Nike actually did something to address the stripe problem on a modern template. Now come up with a solution for UCLA that doesn't look terrible.

[oldschoolvikings]

here is a new college uniform on the speed machine template with longer shoulder stripes:

In this image, it certainly looks like an improvment, but I'm going to wait to see it over pads to say for sure.

[jeremythebadman]

when you design a jersey, do you prefer matte, chrome, or tradidtional helmets?

tradidtional helmets

[TornadoGTS]

when you design a jersey, do you prefer matte, chrome, or tradidtional helmets?

tradidtional helmets

No one asked you.......literally.