NFL Uniforms: Ranking Best to Worst

The uniform … it matters not whether you are a waitress, a fireman, a soldier or a professional athlete, the uniform matters. It is the shield behind which you work. It is the face of your organization to the public, and it can change the way you and your peers are seen. And especially in the sports world, it matters.

As my wife can attest, I am a sports freak … and that I am a bit obsessive (OCD she would say) about certain things around house and home. I’m also a uniform geek. So we are here today to rank the 32 NFL teams’ uniforms from the best to the worst, in my opinion of course.

What are we looking for? Teams get credit for being classic, but they also need to stay somewhat up to date. Points can be earned for being modern but not too much. And I’m taking into account the whole uniform including the helmets, but not the throwback; just the normal sets.

THE BEST

A grouping of the best, in no particular order

• Packers – A classic for the ages, updated ever so slightly as the years pass.
• Saints – Black and Old Gold. Their all black combo is tough looking.
• Falcons – The first big-time modern uni remake, nicely done.
• Bears – Another classic that looks great, and I love the orange alternates.
• Steelers – LOVE the logo on only one side, distinctive numbers, too.
• Colts – One of the few with only two colors used, and used tastefully.
• Raiders –Hate to admit the unis are the one thing Al hasn’t screwed up … yet.
• 49ers – The team tried to mess these up; thankfully the 80s design was reborn.
• Cowboys – Maybe the most recognizable uniform in the NFL. Classic star.
• Texans – Good name, good logo, and a nice clean design with options. Love the red.

THE MUDDLE

Overall decent designs but could use some tweaks

• Rams – The new design is OK; would be in Top 10 with old design and colors.
• Chiefs – A classic uni from the AFL days. Love the helmet logo.
• Bills – Went from one of the worst to pretty good with this year’s redesign.
• Cardinals –The modern design helped this team without any real identity.
• Chargers – Powder blue would put them in near the top. Good logo use.
• Giants – Simple design, simple logo, nice use of color. Love the red uni tops.
• Lions – Recent updates have helped the look. Not great but not awful.
• Panthers – Not crazy about the aqua blue, but good logo and uni balance.
• Ravens – Not a purple fan, but the use of black and simple design helps.
• Buccaneers – Prefer the old creamsicle look. Pewter pants are distinctive.
• Browns – Pretty plain with no logo, but not gag-worthy either.
• Titans – Love the logo, but they have so many blue options on top, I lose track.

THE REST

These uniforms need serious work. Like, for reals.

• Eagles – Another team that needs to revert to previous designs. Kelly green rocks.
• Jets – Nice tribute to their history, but the tops are cluttered.
• Vikings– Again, not a purple fan. Especially on overdone unis like these
• Redskins – Visions of Gibbs and the Hogs are all these give me. Update 'em fast.
• Jaguars – They had a nice design before the latest changes. Bring back the gold.
• Dolphins – Memories of Dan Marino are all that keeps this from being dead last.
• Broncos – Sweet logo, but the uniforms have never worked.
• Seahawks – Puke green on puke green. Nuff said.
• Patriots – Wish they’d use throwbacks full time. The arena-league look isn’t working.
• Bengals – Love the helmet, but the 86 uni variations are ridiculous.

Let me know what uniforms you love AND hate, and why. Tell me where my list is all messed up. Join the conversation … that’s the fun part.

Until next time, thanks for reading.

Steve

NFL Week 2: Games to Watch

Week 1 was great. From record-breaking performances (see Brady, Tom; Newton, Cam) to down-to-the-wire games (Lions@Bucs, Panthers@Cardinals, Cowboys@Jets) to unexpected wins (Bills, Bengals, Jaguars), the first weekend of NFL football was well worth the wait. With lots more where that come from for us every weekend through January, I'm anxious to see what's still behind the curtain.

Here’s a look at a few of this weekend’s best games.

Bears (1-0) @ Saints (0-1) – The Bears looked good beating the Falcons in Atlanta last week; the Saints looked good in defeat at Green Bay but couldn’t slow down the potent Packer offense. The teams hook up this week in New Orleans as the Saints kick-off their home schedule. Brian Urlacher is back from three days of bereavement after the passing of his mother, but it won’t be enough as the Saints put it in high gear this week.

New Orleans 31, Chicago 24

Cardinals (1-0) @ Redskins (1-0) – Arizona travels to D.C. to take on the Redskins in this battle of surprising undefeated teams … at least so far. It’s just one game, but both of these teams will definitely take it. The Cardinals gave up 422 passing yards to Cam Newton in Week 1 so Rex Grossman may have another good day against a porous pass defense. Kevin Kolb will have a tougher time against the fly-to-the-ball Skins defense. Advantage: Redskins.

Washington 17, Arizona 16

Chargers (1-0) @ Patriots (1-0) – This one may be the marquee match-up of the week. The Chargers are coming off a lackluster but resounding beatdown of the Vikings, holding Donovan McNabb to 39 passing yards. Pitiful. And Tom Brady and the Patriots put up 500+ passing yards on the Dolphins in a Monday night victory. Whichever defense plays better wins this game. Plus we’ll see if the Chargers’ special teams coverage has improved in a week. The Pats take it at home.

New England 31, San Diego 27

Eagles (1-0) @ Falcons (0-1) – Michael Vick returns to the Georgia Dome, a place he used to call “my house.” It’s now Matt Ryan’s domain. It will be interesting to see who is more popular with the crowd. Vick is beloved in Atlanta, but I’m sure Matty Ice will have the edge once the game starts. And the Falcons’ offensive staff no doubt will have studied what the Rams did to the middle of the Eagles’ defense in Week 1. Expect to see lots of Michael Turner pounding up the middle. In the battle of the birds, the Falcons take it.

Atlanta 24, Philadelphia 20

As for Missouri’s hometown teams, unfortunately, I have them both losing again this weekend. The Chiefs go to Detroit and face a hot, young Lions team, and the Rams head to New York to take on the football Giants on Monday Night Football. Sorry guys, but it’s going to be another rough weekend.

Enjoy the weekend, NFL fans. Until next time, thanks for reading.

Steve

Top of the Brain: Thursday

Here’s what bouncing around my brain on this Wednesday night … and draining into Thursday morning …  (sorry, just couldn’t come up with any better introduction than that).

Crazy Opening NFL Weekend – We couldn’t have really asked for much more in an opening weekend. The defending-champion Packers looked great in beating the Saints at Lambeau on Thursday. The Ravens defended home turf by absolutely destroying the Steelers (a massive surprise, actually). The up-and-coming-Lions beat the young Bucs in Tampa. Mike Vick and the Eagles whooped the Rams, and in the process put half the team on the injury list. Tom Brady put up 500+ on the helpless Fins. Oh yeah, and the Chiefs got steamrolled at home by the Bills of all teams.

Injuries Galore – In the NFL’s grand wisdom, I guess they don’t think professional football players need much of an offseason anymore. No rookie camp, no mini-camps, no OTAs … no problem, they say. Well, the insane rash of injuries suffered by players scattered all across the league sends an entirely different message. Players (and their bodies) do need the extra work and conditioning and preparation to get ready for the pounding of the NFL season. And let’s hope the reduction of training camp practices and the elimination of two-a-days don’t make this into a trend for future seasons.

Cards Making A Charge – We don’t talk baseball much here on MTSS, but the St. Louis Cardinals are trying to make the NL Wildcard interesting. They have pulled into 4.5 games of the Braves with a recent mini-charge to the finish line, but I just don’t know if they have enough gas left in the tank to pull it off. And Matt Holliday’s recent bizarre hand injury doesn’t help. About the only drama left is whether Albert will get to .300/30/100 again this season, and if Tony can do enough here at the end to warrant being asked back for 2012. Let’s hope not.

Bad Weekend for Missouri Football – I’m not sure the weekend for football fans in Missouri could have been much worse. Mizzou plays at Arizona State on Friday night, gets outclassed for three quarters and then loses in OT. The Chiefs host the laughable Buffalo Bills (4-12 last year) and get trounced at home. And the Rams stumble and fall and get hurt throughout a winnable game against the supposedly high-powered Eagles. Three good teams. Three winnable games. Three losses. I hope we don’t have to get used to this again.

Jaws Drops S-Bomb – And finally, a word or two on the ridiculous circus that erupted in the sports media after ESPN Broadcaster Ron Jaworski drops a barely discernable “sh**” during the Monday Night Football game. It was silly really … the reaction, that is. Mixed in among scantily-clad cheerleaders, Bud Light and Viagara commercials, and guys beating each other’s brains in is this teeny tiny barely-noticeable drop of the S-Bomb. Seriously … that’s a big deal? Come on, people. Most kids hear worse than that at the dinner table.

As always, I’d love to hear your take on any of these stories or something else you think is more interesting. Until next time, thanks for reading.

Steve