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Uni Watch

Monday Morning Uni Watch

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Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Stringer; click to enlarge

Good morning! Greetings from North Carolina, where I enjoyed a really sensational weekend. I’m flying back home this afternoon, and I’ll have more details about my trip (including the very excellent Uni Watch party we had on Saturday) over the next couple of days.

Now then: Highly uni-notable game yesterday in Denver, as the Broncos wore their mono-orange Color Rash uniforms and the Eagles, for the first time ever, wore black pants with their white jerseys (apparently at the urging of quarterback Jalen Hurts). Lots of additional photos here and here.

Here’s how it looked in action:

In other news from around the league yesterday:

• The Titans wore navy over sky blue:

According to the Gridiron Uniform Database, this was the first time they’d worn that uni combo since the final game of the 2018 season.

• In another development that hadn’t happened since 2018, KC wore mono-white:

• Very colorful game in L.A., as the Chargers went powder blue over yellow and the Vikings went white over purple:

• Brutal-looking game in Arizona, as the Panthers and Cardinals competed for the “Worst Pants in the League” award (among other unsightly details):

• Patriots quarterback Mac Jones was missing the star on his right-sleeve Pats logo patch:

This isn’t unprecedented. The same thing happened to linebacker Dont’a Hightower in 2016.

• In that same game, Browns wideout JoJo Natson doubled up on his sock stripes:

• Also from that game, Pats coach Bill Belichick, as per his annual custom, declined to participate in the G.I. Joke cosplay routine (here’s why):

• Speaking of coaches, here’s something I haven’t seen before: a KC coach — I’m not sure which one — had a pouch sewn into his pullover top for his play-calling cards.

• Washington has had the NFL logo at midfield since changing the team’s name last season, but yesterday they had a team logo:

• Only one team wore white at home: the Cowboys, of course.

Looking ahead, tonight’s game will feature the 49ers’ throwbacks against the Rams’ white alternates.

(My thanks to all contributors, including Elias Betancourt, Dylan Boulanger, Matt Cimetti, K.C. Kless, Brandon Pinon, @Tileeom, and our own Jamie Rathjen.)

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Photo by R. Scott Rogers; click to enlarge

Cap inventory update: Supplies of the Uni Watch Alternate cap continue to dwindle. Here’s what we have left:

7: Sold out
7-1/8: 1
7-1/4: 1
7-3/8: 1
7-1/2: Sold out
7-5/8: 4
7-3/4: 2
7-7/8: 2
8: Sold out

The hat is available here while supplies last.

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The Ticker
By Jamie Rathjen

Softball News: Texas softball retired No. 8 at Saturday’s football game for former U.S. national team pitcher Cat Osterman.
 

Football News: New Rams WR Odell Beckham Jr. had slight problems with potential numbers he wanted before signing, as some of them are taken this season or will be next season (thanks, Phil). … Sky Sports, which shows some NFL games in the U.K., mistakenly called the Titans the “Tigers” yesterday (from Patrick Williams). … Reader Wade Heidt has Canadian college uni tracking in yesterday’s comments.

Hockey News: The Capitals wore Hockey Fights Cancer warm-up jerseys last night. … RDS, the French version of Canada’s TSN, was still using the old color scheme of the AHL’s Utica Comets in its scorebug on Saturday (from James Beattie). … The rest of these are from Wade Heidt: Jets G Connor Hellebuyck had a Canadian Armed Forces Night-themed mask on Saturday. … The WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers and Moose Jaw wore their winners of the CHL’s Leave Your Mark Design a Jersey contest. … The OHL’s Saginaw Spirit wore alternates for a military appreciation night.

Basketball News: Oklahoma State’s men’s team wore their turquoise alternates yesterday, creating color-vs.-color with Prairie View A&M (from @GeoPokes). … The Spurs will need a new advertised name for their arena next season.

Soccer News: The U.K. countries’ men’s national teams all wore poppy armbands this weekend, which is the compromise to get around the poppy being considered a political symbol at the national team level. France’s men’s team wore bluet armbands. … Wales winger Gareth Bale got a commemorative shirt for 100 apperances. … Wales also wore warm-up shirts supporting Bournemouth winger David Brooks and Livingston goalie Dan Barden, who have played for the senior and under-21 men’s teams before, respectively, and were both recently diagnosed with different cancers. … The YouTube channel AwayDays helped put together a video on the top 10 shirts in Japan’s J.League (from Jeremy Brahm). … A match in England’s FA Trophy between two clubs in the men’s eighth tier, Marine and Dunston UTS, saw the stadium lights fail. As everyone has other jobs at that level one of the Dunston players happened to be an electrician and fixed the problem in full uniform (from my brother Nate Rathjen).

Olympics News: Finland’s jerseys for presumably both ice hockey tournaments in Beijing were released (from @Yff26).
 

Grab Bag: The U.K. countries’ men’s and women’s rugby union teams wore poppies on their sleeves this weekend. … Syracuse is another school with a 50th-anniversary logo for women’s athletics. … Jess Jonassen, one of the players on Australian cricket’s Women’s Big Bash League’s Brisbane Heat, got a commemorative shirt for 100 appearances. She’s the first WBBL player to reach the milestone, and she’s played in every possible Heat game since the competition started in 2015. … The Heat also have an extra video on their shirt design for this weekend’s WBBL Indigenous round. … “Toyota introduced their new Supra funny car [drag racing] body on Saturday,” says David Firestone. … French President Emmanuel Macron switched the shade of blue used on the French flag back to a darker shade. There are darker and lighter versions that already coexist, but the lighter version was only introduced in 1976 (from Kenneth Traisman). … Movie details: Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings contains a reference to the Tiananmen Square protests on a bus driver’s uniform (from @Minor_Leaguer).

 
  
 
Categories
NFL
Comments (50)

    “ Very colorful game in L.A., as the Chargers wen’t powder blue over yellow and the Vikings went white over purple:” – No apostrophe needed in wen’t

    Broncos also wore their ”D” helmet yesterday instead of their regular “racing horse head”, or whatever it’s called.

    I’ll have you know around Colorado we refer to that logo as “Robo-Horse” or the “Flaming Horse Head.” I would prefer to call him something homier like “Spot” or “Ol’ Yeller.”

    Lol. The statement right after the KC vs Vegas photo says “Very colorful game in L.A.”, referring of course to the LA vs MIN game below. I did a double take on that one, too. Still not used to the Chargers move. (In fact, I just typed SD vs MIN and noticed just before I submitted this comment!)

    Still refer to them as San Diego. And I continue to read that they struggle to actually have a home crowd in their new stadium.
    Having the Chargers come to LA to play second fiddle when the market got by without ANY NFL teams for two decades was one of the bigger bonehead moves the NFL has made.
    Pure greed on the part of the other owners looking to cash in on the Chargers relocation fee.

    The Eagles’ black pants don’t actually look too bad since they match a lot of trim on the white jerseys. Wish they wore green hosiery with ‘em to break it up though. After they game, they were teasing that more unusual uni combos might be coming now, too. Green over black is the only one they haven’t done before as fas I know.
    Also, it’d be great if the Broncos could whip up some navy pants in the Rash style to wear with those jerseys. That’d be a sharp look.

    Was going to say the black pants wouldn’t as awful if pair with green socks or white socks with green/black stripes. Though in general when they where any black is looks bad because of how dark the helmet is, there is so little contrast. I was at the game years ago when they first wore black jerseys, and in the stands it was hard to really see the difference between that and the dark green jerseys at a distance.

    And every time the Broncos wear this uniform it is a reminder of just how much better their classic look is compared to their garbage uniforms now.

    I have green/red color blindness, and as a result I have trouble seeing the grey stripe on the Eagles’ white or green pants. The anthracite grey is the exact same value as the midnight green. Is there a grey stripe on the black pants that I can’t see?

    I’m not color blind at all, but had never noticed it before, and have a hard time making it out in actual photos. But according to the GUD there is a thin grey stripe between the white and green stripes. And on the GUD I had to pull up the high res version of the pants to even see it.
    Tested myself again to make sure I have normal color vision. It is just nearly impossible to spot given the dark gray and muted dark green colors being similar.
    More reason for the Eagles to go back to kelly green and silver full time.

    “…it’d be great if the Broncos could whip up some navy pants in the Rash style to wear with those jerseys. That’d be a sharp look.”

    Add white facemasks and I’m on board!

    They’ve worn green shirts and black pants before. It looks terrible.

    I hate the black jerseys in general, but this white over black was a pleasant suprise.

    Reading between the lines a bit, it seems like Belichick’s sartorial choices are more a personal comfort/familiarity issue than any ideological problem with the camo.

    FWIW, I have no opinion on the camo one way or another, but I can relate to being stubborn about clothing choices for comfort. I’m very picky about my hats, for example, and would probably look for a loophole (if not outright refuse) if I was required to wear a type of hat I didn’t like.

    I think Coach wants to wear the blue because it makes him stand out from the rest of sideline personnel. If you’re sending in hand signals or need to be seen for whatever reason, you want to contrast with whatever the rest of your players and coaches wear.

    And because, Belichick

    I think the Eagles looked pretty damn sharp, and I’m no fan of BFBS. I don’t really like their black jerseys because it never looks right with their green helmets, but the black pants provide enough separation from the helmet to look good.

    I hope they don’t try going mono-black or (God forbid) mono-green. Those looks are pretty awful. Green jerseys with black pants would probably be just as bad…

    The problem with white over black, for most teams, is it’s completely non-distinct. Even just looking on GUD for a previous comment, I accidentally clicked on the Ravens game. Ravens, Saints, Falcons, Jags all have that option.

    I’m not sure why, but I just don’t like the look of KC when they go white over white (jersey/pants). I always had the same issue when the Browns did/do it. Probably has to do with the dark (er) helmet vs all-white below, since I don’t have any similar issue with, say, the Colts doing it. I much prefer KC and Cleveland with their “away” look being red and orange pants, respectively. All white looks like a group of ice cream men or something (not that I have anything against the ice cream man/person).

    The white-over-white road uniform is a great look for many NFL teams…Chiefs included. I can’t articulate why, but I just don’t like their red pants; the striping pattern they use on them makes me dislike them more.
    The team that I wish would steer clear of the mono-white combo is the Bengals.
    A team that should embrace the look more often: Da Bears.

    A number of teams went white-over-white yesterday, including three that normally have colored pants: the Lions, Panthers, and Chiefs. The Bills also wore mono white, but this is fairly common for them. I’m okay with the Chiefs and Bills in mono white, but prefer the Lions and Panthers in their silver pants.

    As a lifelong Bears fan in my 40s, I am used to seeing them in white-over-blue, and that’s what I prefer. I often see comments from people saying they wish the Bears still wore white-over-white. It looks like 1984 is when they made the switch to primarily white-over-blue. link White-over-blue has been their usual road uniform for so long, that it seems like it’s time to accept that this is their look now. It’s not just a fad. I don’t feel like I’m some young whippersnapper that’s chasing the latest trends like colored pants on the Bears. I’m fine with a throwback mono-white game every once in a while, but overall I like a little color in my football uniforms. The trend to mono-black vs. mono-white games (especially common in college football) is a trend that I don’t like. I think many young people are attracted to the extreme of being all-black or all-white, but the end result is a boring, colorless game.

    Times Union Center in Albany, NY has a new sponser. MVP Health Care based out of nearby Schenectady, NY. The arena will be called MVP Arena. I’m still calling it the Knickerbocker Arena.

    We need Naming Wrongs shirts for both venues. Also, in Denver, for most of us, It’s the Pepsi Center and not Ball Arena as they insist on calling it now.

    Regarding the soccer ticker item about the Wales warm-up T-shirts supporting David Brooks and Dan Barden.

    The messages (I David, I Dan) are in Welsh (or Cymraeg, if you’d prefer to use the name of the language itself) and mean For David, For Dan

    The FA of Wales has started using a lot more Welsh as a default, and in the last 3 or 4 years just calls the team Cymru as a default, which is interesting and for me, very encouraging..

    Here’s the definition of Cosplay from Miriam Webster:

    Cosplay: the activity or practice of dressing up as a character from a work of fiction (such as a comic book, video game, or television show)

    I don’t think the NFL participated in Cosplay…

    Totally cosplay. They’ve created a fictitious (and very comic book-like) narrative in which all soldiers are heroes and all heroes are soldiers, and where unquestioned support for the military is conflated with patriotism, none of which is true. Then they play dress-up soldier to fit into and reinforce that fictitious narrative. Totally cosplay.

    So much like the rest of the media, you’ve decided to redefine what a word means in order to fit your narrative. Thanks for stating your bias.

    Actually, Tim, that is false.

    I explained how the situation fits your definition. You simply chose to ignore my explanation. That reflects *your* bias.

    But if you prefer a different term than “cosplay” — like, say, “dress-up soldier,” or “stolen valor,” or “propaganda for the military industrial complex” — I’ll consider using one of those instead.

    You already know my position on this stuff, and I already know yours. Picking that scab gets us nowhere, so let’s please instead agree to disagree and move in. Thanks.

    The military pays the NFL for various patriotic displays at games as part of their recruiting marketing. The NFL dresses itself up like soldiers as a pretend show of support which is really just an advertisement for their military theme merchandise.
    It is hard to view the NFL’s “support” for members of the military as anything other than a cash grab. (And at this point it is hard to view anything the NFL does other than a decision that will financially benefit them).

    Agreed.

    And the Lions should go back to silver (not gray) pants. The Raiders were wearing silver pants last night, so I know it’s still possible to make them.

    Seconded. It’s the NFL: Where’s the value added? At the very least, put embroidered helmet logos on the hips.

    I felt they looked too much like a college team. If you have white 3rd pants, at least have the stripes to match the sleeves of the jersey. Or just wear the Hblue pants and call it good.

    Canadian colleges are somewhat similar to institutions in the United States often referred to as community colleges. The highest level of Canadian amateur post-secondary football takes place at the universities. They play under USports formerly CIAU ultimately competing for the Vanier Cup. These are the teams that Wade covers.

    (Simon Fraser University is the exception – plays in the U.S. NCAA Division II: Great Northwest Athletic Conference)

    Wade or anyone else chime in if I’m a bit off the mark.

    You’re correct. USports was called CIAU until 2001 and then CIS until 2016.

    I still hear it called “college” football here even though its played by universities. The Vanier Cup is still often called the College Bowl.

    link

    Seven teams left in the hunt for the Vanier Cup. Manitoba and Queen’s still alive!

    Will, that is true.

    You are right Will. It is university football in Canada that is at the highest level. I do refer to it as university football.

    However, I have branded my post as “College Football Uni Tracking – Canadian Rules Style!” for a couple of reasons. It is just a title for the post. It is consistent with the title for the U.S. college football uni tracking that is posted on Sunday. It also avoids confusion for any U.S. readers that may not know we call it university football. It reflects that this is our big amateur post-secondary football in Canada.

    I know Simon Fraser loves having their NCAA designation, but I really wish the football team would come back home. SFU, there is always a spot open for you in the Canada West conference again if you want to come back and play the Canadian game.

    Have the Lions white pants been covered yet this season? Maybe I missed that post after they wore them the first time (according to GUD)? They looked very plain, the HBlue pants would have made that a colorful game as well.

    I’m not crazy about the doubled-up sock stripes for Jo Jo Natson, but everything else about that Browns uniform is fire. They went from having what was historically one of the best unis in the league to having an utter disastrous shit-show and then back to the top again. It’s a shame the Seahawks and Rams haven’t done the same.

    Football not a good topic in Seattle today…

    1. Seahawks shut out for the first time with Russ/Pete at the helm. Russ looked awful. So do the uniforms they lost in at Green Bay. Need to go back to the Silver Lids and the old color scheme.
    2. UW Fired their Head Coach, with less than 2 years under his belt. Some of the ugliest uniforms in the United States. UW can’t figure out if their primary color is black, purple or gold.

    Cards and Panthers can’t win the worst pants trophy as long as the Lions white pantyhose stays around.

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