By Phil Hecken
This fine Saturday we’re down to the third set (of 3) of the Redesign the Washington Football contestants. If you missed Part 1, you can check out the first 11 submissions here, and for Part 2, the second 11 submissions are here. All submissions are in alphabetical order, so today is the final set of 11 12 contestants.
By now, I’m sure you guys are familiar with the groundrules, so a quick recap: 11 (12 today) submissions will be shown on three successive weekend days (Saturday-Sunday last weekend, and today), and following that there will be voting on all the entries. The top 10 from there will move on to the final voting, from which one victor will be crowned. All logos and uniform concepts for the last 11 12 contestants are displayed below, and you can click on each graphic to see a full-size version. Descriptions of each submission will follow.
Ready? Here’s Part 3:
Bobby Pinkham:
Description: Here’s my entry for the Washington Football Redesign Contest. LOGO, HOME, AWAY. I chose Warriors for a few reasons. It was the second most popular choice in the renaming poll and I liked it because it’s alliterative, a reliable and classic way to go when naming a team. It’s also one of those names that get chosen because it conveys toughness and superiority in general (plus it’s a somewhat logical progression from Redskins to something less offensive.) I didn’t want to change much else about the unis because who doesn’t love the classic burgundy and gold? The only changes I made were to change the logo t an army font W in a gold circle and I added contrasting yokes to the jerseys for a more classic feel.
John Pollicino:
Description: Here is my proposal for the newly renamed Washington Warriors. As a D.C. resident, I am acutely aware of the passion people have here for the Burgundy and Gold so I thought that subtle changes would be best. I created the logo by combining the old logo, adding a “W” to replace the head, removed the feathers and added the throwback spear (sans feathers). For the uniforms, I copied the format from my favorite team the New York Jets. I am a big fan of the site, have a great day.
Jeff Provo:
Description: I decided to use the Washington Warriors. I like the alliteration and I think it fits in nicely with the Wizards. Detroit has Lions & Tigers (but no Bears, oh my), Washington can have Wizards and Warriors. The team imagery is based around battle axes (a typical weapon for the “Warrior” class in any RPG), and the team colors are Burgundy & Metallic Gold. I kept the uniform relatively traditional so as to not scare away any of Washington’s current fans.
Elliot Schunke:
Description: First off, I feel the NFL is greatly lacking in the reptilian department. What better scaled beast to choose than the Dragon? Besides, a lot of fire-hot air gets blown outta that town, so it’s fitting. I kept the colors the same because it’s a classic combo. Two logos are used on the uni: the “DC Dragon” to be used as a breast patch, and a blown-up version of the dragon’s head, which adorns the helmet. The shoulder stripes branch from a single stripe giving an effect of the framework of a dragon wing. Enjoy!
Adam Seabury:
Description: I wanted to do something that would still feel familiar to longtime fans, so I kept the same colors and integrated some design elements that are found in the current team’s identity (the “dirt” on the eagle’s tail feathers is the one I’m most proud of). I chose Federals as the team name, and played around with elements found on the federal “eagle” seal. The helmet logos are slightly different on each side. The eagle is clutching a bundle of arrows on the left, and an olive branch on the right. In the spirit of Washington’s “feather stripe” helmet, the white stripes are formed by the banner the eagle carries, its tails forming a vague “W” on the back. I wanted the fact that the team is from Washington DC (as opposed to the state) to be apparent, so the pants have a DC hip logo, and the numbers use it as a pattern. The main logo (with the exception of “Washington”), number font, and nameplate font are all custom. The main jerseys are pretty traditional, but I just couldn’t resist doing a Seahawk-esque alternate, complete with its very own swooshbag.
Dan Taylor:
Descripton: I created this because I thought it looks sweet!
Jason Thyrion:
Description: If Washington has to have a name change and it has to have a government-themed name on top of it, then the Federals are the only choice, even if the team that originally bore the name stunk. It’s basically a re-dress of a Redskin uniform, as well as a preservation of the color palette, with an element or two from the original Federals thrown in.
Lee Traylor:
Description: Attached my entry for the Redskins re-name game. Took inspiration from Michigan’s legacy jerseys and Pat Patriot. Red, white, and blue make sense in our nation’s capitol, but I tried to use a different enough spin on it to make it both stand out and pay homage to the area’s history. Hope you like it!
Stephen Vincent:
Description: I wanted to add a submission to this contest, and then I wanted to apologize for having to do it in Paint, but that’s what I have to work with. Anyhow, I went with Hogs because I think it would be cool to have an NFL team named after an offensive line.
Adam Walter:
Description: The Washington Green Dots were made specifically to make everyone on the team feel good about themselves by getting to wear the elusive “green dot” that only quarterbacks and middle linebackers typically get to wear. Everyone is a winner on the Green Dots!
Eve Wilderman:
Description: As the nation’s capitol, I kept going back to government nicknames and thought Federals had some strength. I also wanted to use the district flag, hence the repetition of two stripes and three stars in red. The logos bring in historical concepts – the first flag’s circle of stars and the quill pen, with three feathers for the three branches of government. The color scheme incorporates the red from the program’s history (sort of) and the district flag, but overall highlights a clean, bold appearance.
John Woods:
Description: I really think the USFL Washington Federals had a very underrated logo. You had the bald eagle symbol, the wings making a green W and the negative space making a white F. There’s no way we could use this logo with Philadelphia in the same division. So I tried using a shield logo to get the W in burgundy stripes and getting the F in the white negative space. I’m not happy with these results but I just wanted to show you where I was going. The uniforms would stay the same so it would still look like Washington vs Dallas.
And there you have it — the third and final set of redesigns. Take notes, pick your favorites, talk about them in the comments. Tomorrow, I’ll have a poll and you will be given the opportunity to vote upon every design. You’ll get to “Pick 5” of your favorites, out of the 33 total submissions.
We’ll tally the votes during the week, and next weekend I’ll announce the top 10 vote-getters. Those 10 will then compete against each other (you’ll get one vote in the final) and the top vote getter in that group is the winner. OK? OK — make sure you check back tomorrow to begin voting, and I’ll keep that voting open all week long.
Benchies
by Rick Pearson
Not even if it’s multiple choice?…
Click to enlarge
And now a quick word from Paul:
Hi, people.
Today is a another special date on the Uni Watch calendar, because it was 13 years ago today — May 26, 1999 — that the very first Uni Watch column appeared in the Village Voice. I never imagined Uni Watch would prove to be such a durable project — pretty amazing. My thanks to everyone who’s helped out along the way. You’re all aces.
And finally…
Big congratulations to Paul! Can’t believe it’s been 13 years buddy. I’m sure the concepters are already busy designing your 15 year patch (you will have a patch, right?). Cheers!
And that will do it for this fine Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. Make sure to let today’s contestants know what you really think of their designs, and take good notes, because tomorrow we vote! And hey, Ricko — who’s on first?
Everyone enjoy the day and I’ll catch you tomorrow.
“Camo hats … awful. Camo uniforms … beyond awful. This goes for the horrendous ‘flag’ hats as well. The Orioles have been losers for 24 of the last 26 years, all we’ve had is the history and the uniform to fall back on. Now we get the atrocious (and incorrect) O’s hat and this travesty. Thank you MLB and Peter Angelos. No nuance on the interwebs-just anger!” — Aaron Siemsen
I actually really like the basic concept of that Frogs uniform. It’s too “fun” for the NFL, but it’s a neat idea. The best part is that the fans could still dress as female pigs.
I totally agree. It looks like something a minor-league baseball team would do as a one-off. I would love to see the design drafted on that Nike template.
Who better to carry a pigskin?
link
The conceptor fails to not a really big point, mainly that Jim Henson (and, by extension, Kermit the Frog) got his start on Washington, D.C. TV station WRC.
The Green Dots is classic.
Or maybe the “Washington Participants”, and the logo would be a green dot.
Or a gold star.
If going bye pure design I do like the Dragon’s one, looks a little “arena” for NFL tastes but then, the NFL has okayed som ugly designs now.
Realistically, I like Pollicino’s Warriors re-brand and usage of classic imagery. But, Schunke’s Dragons concept is fun and creative!
Love the dragons…all though I wonder how much the team and Nike would get ripped on here if it was an actual uni
Got to go with the Warriors.
Lee Traylor’s concept is beautiful. Pretty sure the big W on front isn’t kosher with the rulebook, but who knows – in this brave new world where RGIII wears RNOB, maybe Goodell would let it slip through the cracks.
Well thanks, buddy. However, I feel like my design was obliterated by my new favorite football team of all time, the Maryland Frogs.
I mean, look at those pant stripes. They’re tiny little frog legs. Genius!
No offense meant but the battle-axe blades on Provo’s Warriors concept primary and secondary logos look a bit like testicles. On the helmet they look a bit bit like a crown atop the “W,” a bit like the WLAF London Monarchs.
…and yes I realize I used the word “bit” a bit too much in that post.
…crap.
Back to the drawing board.
Please don’t take it the wrong way; I think if the blades are just, well, less round they’d be fine.
Fair enough, I just wish I’d have noticed that similarity myself, so I could have done something a little different with it.
I have to say that with the amount of “Warriors” concepts, I’m almost wishing I’d gone with my second idea – the Washington DCs, with an electric theme. Ah well.
“No offense meant but the battle-axe blades on Provo’s Warriors concept primary and secondary logos look a bit like testicles.”
… cue Sigmund Freud. “How do you feel about your mother, Jeff?”
I know I said this last weekend about the double phallic symbols on another concept, but these things really should be in Uni Concept 101. I would put it in the same group of avoiding rival’s colors/looks, copying existing sports & corporate logos, political or religious overtones, accurate flesh tone/specific ethnicity, etc.
Yeah… well… Washington’s basketball team uses this: link so maybe it’s appropriate for the city. ;)
The Diamondbacks alternate logo is link.
I love how Abe Pollin changed the name from “Bullets” because it was too violent and changed it to the much worse implied links.
The change may have been political, but it still reeks of a quick merchandising grab since their sales were at the bottom of the league.
Can you imagine the Frogs defense swarming like the first Passover plague? Alternatively, if they get blown out, then you could say that the Frogs surrendered fairly quickly.
and of course any rookies can be called Tadpoles
Thanks to all who submitted entries, your efforts are appreciated. My favorites are Bobby Pinkham, Dan Taylor, and Elliot Schunke. Nice to see that in a world of photoshop & MS Paint we got a few hand drawn entries.
I also feel the USFL’s Washington Federals had an underappreciated logo. Their uniforms were pretty good, too. Unfortunately, I just don’t know that you want to call attention to that era of Washington football. If only the Federals played as good as they looked.
The Redskins were pretty good then; back end of Joe Theismann’s career. They were defending Super Bowl champs when the Federals started play in ’83, and won the NFC title (but lost the Super Bowl) the following year. They won the division in ’84 and were upset in the playoffs by the Bears.
I liked the ’84 Federals uni (silver helmet) better than ’83 (white helmet). They did upset the Generals in ’84, which pissed me off at the time.
link (or Washington Kermits)?
Washington Irvings?
Logo could be the Headless Horseman from Sleepy Hollow…
link
or Rip Van Winkle…
link
Interesting use of the labrys, Jeff. A team nickname could be “Beltway Barbarians” or something else suitably Robert E. Howard-ish.
I was wondering, though…anyone think about the Virginians? The current logo could easily just put George Washington in, change a few details like getting rid of the feather and there ya go. Only problem with this is that the stadium’s in the wrong state.
Why was my design not posted?
It probably got lost in the shuffle or killed by Phil’s spam filters or something. I don’t think he’d intentionally leave it out, unless it was something blatantly offensive or you missed the original entry deadline.
Post it here.
link
link
link
link
link
link
link
“I wanted to do something that would still feel familiar to longtime fans, so I kept the same colors and integrated some design elements that are found in the current team’s identity (the “dirt” on the eagle’s tail feathers is the one I’m most proud of). I chose Federals as the team name, and played around with elements found on the federal “eagle” seal. The helmet logos are slightly different on each side. The eagle is clutching a bundle of arrows on the left, and an olive branch on the right. In the spirit of Washington’s “feather stripe” helmet, the white stripes are formed by the banner the eagle carries, its tails forming a vague “W” on the back. I wanted the fact that the team is from Washington DC (as opposed to the state) to be apparent, so the pants have a DC hip logo, and the numbers use it as a pattern. The main logo (with the exception of “Washington”), number font, and nameplate font are all custom. The main jerseys are pretty traditional, but I just couldn’t resist doing a Seahawk-esque alternate, complete with its very own swooshbag.”
Somebody really likes the ESPN font.
I didn’t realize the similarities until long after I finished the design. I just thought it was interesting looking.
I was cutting it close, but I sent it by the 15th. After I saw the write ups on the first week of the Cleveland rename, I sent him a different write up (the one I posted) that was a bit less abridged than the one with the original email. Don’t know it that’s a no-no or not. It must have gotten lost in the shuffle or something, like you said.
shit — adam just sent it to me again, and i did have it in there — not sure HOW i missed that one — i’m usually very good about this…
will post it henceforth…
give me a few minutes
aight — it’s now in there (curse you for having 7 separate attachments ;) )
i realize the bottom unis are a bit cut off, and i’ll try to fix that but if you click on them, to view them full-size, the show the full uni
gotta run for a bit
That’s very nice. I especially love the different items in the eagle’s clutches on each side. Something about the wing seems a bit blocky to me, though.
Looking at it now (about a month later), I see I could have extended the wing further. At the time, though, I was trying not to have anything extend too far out of the background circle.
Now that it’s posted… The eagle pulling the stripe off the helmet is great… but they play in the same division as the Philadelphia Eagles. Putting an eagle in the logo is just not going to fly (sorry) in the NFC East. If we could put them in the AFC North and throw the Ravens in the NFC East, you’d have a winner.
Yeah, I thought about that, but I couldn’t resist all the possibilities the classic federal eagle logo gave me to play with. I tried to make the other elements help it stand apart as something other than just another bird logo.
I was originally planning to do an alternate logo with a cartoon eagle wearing a suit and sunglasses (Feds), but I ended up running out of time. I did still make the eagle’s eye vaguely sunglass-esque.
We can call the eagle a redhawk.
Have to agree with Jeff here, but damn good job with this Adam. I really like what you did with that logo, uniform, etc… Only thing I would alter is the wordmark.
ok — now it should be totally fixed (had to rescale the bottom three images)
will make sure it’s included in the poll tomorrow
sorry about that
Thanks!!!
Got to go with Pinkham’s Warriors as my fave of the lot. Although, I thought the compression sleeves were very cool, I had to try and ignore them, because it’s just not reality in that most players would not wear them. Still, even without the sleeves, a nice redo that’s consistent with what they have today.
Have to say, I also like what Eve Wilderman did with that Federals wordmark/logo.
Thanks for posting my design! Let’s go frogs!
Love the frogleg stripe on the pants!
That’s the best part.
Dan Taylor’s Frogs win this whole fucking thing. Love it.
Yes….yes, it’s brilliant in some ways, the Maryland Frogs. Under Armour, pay attention before Nike steals this right from under your nose.
Pollicino and Thyrion are the best two on this one.. In that order…
I love the DC Dragons concept, and Lee Traylor’s Washington Federals design.
That Frogs uniform is pure genius. And the description is an all time classic.
As a ‘long-time’ (I put that in quotes because some people would scoff at 25 years being a long time) Washington Redskins fan, if it makes people feel better I’d be okay with changing the name and logo. However, I would never buy any merchandise with that new name or logo on it (haven’t decided yet about video games – guess I’d have to burn that bridge when I get to it), and certainly would never refer to the team with that new name.
As for today’s designs, I like Adam Seabury’s the best, sans-eagle. As many people have pointed out, that wouldn’t fly in the NFC East. The color scheme and uniforms are the closest to the current, so that’s why I picked this set.
The Frogs jersey is pretty funny, though. Wouldn’t mind seeing that in the UFL or Arena League.
Congrats on 13 years Paul! “Who’d of thunk it.”
Thank you for making uni-watching so enjoyable. Appreciate everything you’ve done, especially from someone from Australia that enjoys the peccadillos of US sport!
I vote Dan Taylor.
Love the description too.
Lee Traylor: “Red, white, and blue make sense in our nation’s capitol, but I tried to use a different enough spin on it to make it both stand out and pay homage to the area’s history”
That’s not blue, it’s teal!
Ding ding ding! I was wondering how long it would take someone to pick up on the fact that my blues don’t match. For the record, I tried to get RGIII’s jersey to match the soldier blue in my logo (and the endzones in the field design), but my Photoshop skills were just not quite up to snuff. It looks more like this in my head:
link
I really like Pimkham’s uniform design, but with Pollicino’s logo with the spear.
You have to go with the classic design of the Frogs! It is just too good!
Pollicino. Solid design and but the helmet logo is what got my vote.
Thyrion gets my vote. I dig the red and blue hints on the burgundy a gold.
Pinkham’s Warriors idea and Seasbury’s Federals get my vote.
With that said, Dan Taylor’s idea was fun. Big Kudo’s for hand drawing it (I especially love that you went over the whitejersey’s shoulder to make a shoulder pad)!
“Description: I created this because I thought it looks sweet!”
The most honest and succinct description ever.
What about the Washington Generals ?? Generals sounds better than Federals…
Generals sounds better than Federals…
Perhaps.
But the Washington Generals have achieved immortality as “that team that always loses to the Globetrotters”, so it would never work for a football team.
Considering that Red Klotz and the “Washington Generals” had a cumulative record of, like, 0-5000 against the Globetrotters over the years, that isn’t a nickname likely to come up again in pro sports. Not seriously, anyway.
“Commanders” might not be bad. In theory, the team always would be named for the current President. And/or Presidents past.
I need to type faster, evidently. :)
It’s always a bit disturbing when Ricko and THE lineup on an opinion. I think that makes it a fact.
Washington Bar[r]acks *does* sound quite good though…
The Dragons and Lee Traylor’s Federals were my top choices from today. I love the colors of the Federals and the look of the uni itself. Though I very much like the Dragons. The NFL needs something different and unique. Great job to all of them. I can’t get Kermit out of my head while looking at the Frogs.
Bobby Pinkham’s Warriors are my fave for today.
Got to thinking – instead of messing with teams’ uniforms with all the GI Joe caps & jerseys, why not go with camo (or black for Memorial Day and flag-themed for Independence Day) bats? Thanks to wet-film application, you can put camo on any object or surface. This video from a company that sells DIY kits shows more or less how it’s done in the factory setting; you could absolutely do this to bats to put either camo or a nice stars-and-stripes pattern on the head of a bat:
link
That wouldn’t be anywhere near “look-at-us-and-how-much-we-care” enough.
Just got a fleeting look on TV at the Rusty Staub bobblehead being given out at the Mets-Padres game today. It looked like they used the uniform from his first Mets stint (early-to-mid-70s), but the uni number from his second time there (early-to-mid-80s). He wore 4 his first time around and 10 his second. Can anybody confirm?
yes
The Houston Dynamo have alts on today. A darker orange than usual, with pins.
Bobby Pinkham’s Warriors, John Pollicino’s Warriors, and Adam Seabury’s Federals are my favorite today.
The Maryland Frogs concept may be my favorite concept that has no chance of winning. I love the Kermit aspects, I wouldn’t ever consider it as an actual option but it is awesome.
I wish someone would have taken my idea (I got started on my Tribe concept too late to make an entry worth a darn for the Redskins rebrand), which would have been taking the 2002 throwback uniforms and removing the feather and changing the name to Warriors. John did that with the logo but he created a new uniform to go along with it.
My favorite so far is still the Stemps, though I would prefer that the Jersey matched the pants (the pants are the right color whereas the jersey is lighter, I know that’s how their current uniforms are but that is also one of the things that gets on my nerves, the jerseys look so much better when it is drizzling because they become darker). And I would prefer the helmets be Burgundy than gold.
New US soccer home kit on display tonight. The numbers are absolutely terrible — almost invisible from distance. Striped socks might have been better, but solid white are all right. Other than that, not bad.
I don’t understand the point of white numbers.
I think they’re silver. Thicker trim, and they might have pulled it off.
>FIFA doesn’t allow full hoops on shirts because they “interfere” with number legibility
>U.S. team has nearly invisible numbers and haven’t been notified by FIFA once
>link
Why can’t FIFA allow the U.S. to have full hoops and navy numbers with a semi-thick white outline?
If Argentina wore hoops (as their rugby team do), I think they might be permitted to wear full hoops because their black numbers would be sufficiently contrasted with the sky blue and white.
But yeah… if the US were to submit this kit for approval prior to the World Cup Finals (assuming we qualify), I think FIFA would order the US to use either navy or red numbers on this shirt.
The silver numbers are perfectly fine for the navy jerseys.
Scotland’s red socks are puzzling. Their flag and colors are blue and white, and red is an English color.
Scotland’s sporting color is dark blue. This is a very traditional soccer uniform for Scotland.
Forgot to add that red socks are very traditional for Scottish soccer.
OK, thanks, I figured I was missing something.
Have you seen Scotland’s two official flags? The Saltire is blue (Pantone 300 specifically) and white, but the Royal Standard is a RED lion rampant surrounded by a RED border on a field of yellow. That same RED lion rampant appears in the SFA logo, which is on Scotland’s shirt. Therefore, red socks are totally appropriate. And yes, the kit Scotland is wearing tonight is a very traditional Scottish kit.
After I read my comment I realized I sounded snarky and didn’t intend to, so my apologies.
Perhaps “nobody” is thinking of Scottish rugby. They wear dark blue socks.
How do people get the Nike Pro Combat uniform templates? I would like to have it if possible.
I edited an existing template to make mine. I was planning on registering over at the Chris Creamer forums and sharing it, but after multiple attempts, I never received a confirmation email allowing me to post anything.
link
Fantastic cap, Ozzie!
And I thought you found a picture of Guillén wearing an orange Marlins cap…
Orange cap? link
Boy, was link a real missed opportunity. Coulda been a nice contrast, but instead it looked a bit like an intrasquad game.
Boy did I screw that up.
I said, link
I voted for the Federals ;-)
In other news, local man wants the St. Louis Rams to change their name:
link
As much as I hate to point it out, most all of the Washington rebrands are lacking something required by the NFL’s Nike contract: sleeve swooshes. Anyway to add them? Afterall, they might be understandably unpopular, but they also have a dramatic impact on how sleeve design is handled (see my Seahawks, for example).
If the team changes its names to the Federals, I am going to get a copyright for FedSkins.
Jason Thyrion’s Warriors design is my favorite, especially the logo! Then again, I’ve always been an advocate of the vintage look.