There hadn't been much uniform-related NFL news in recent weeks, but there's been a flurry of activity in the past 24 hours, with two teams unveiling long-anticipated throwback designs and the league adopting a new uniform protocol for Thursday night games.
Here's a rundown, with Uni Watch's take on each development:
• The Green Bay Packers had been dropping hints for months about a new throwback design, and now we finally know what it looks like. This design, which replaces the "Acme Packers" throwback that the team had worn in recent years, will be worn on Oct. 18 against the Chargers. In keeping with the NFL's "one helmet" rule, which is designed to decrease the risk of concussions, Green Bay players will wear their regular helmets with this uniform, but with the logo decals and striping tape removed.
Interestingly, this design is a throwback to an earlier throwback, because it's essentially the same uniform the team wore in 1994, when NFL teams wore heritage uniforms to mark the league's 75th anniversary. It's based on the uniform Green Bay wore in the 1940s -- the Don Hutson and Curly Lambeau era. (You can see additional vintage photos here.)
One small gripe: The Packers are keeping their standard green face masks, which clash with the throwback uniform's navy-centric color scheme. Even under the "one helmet" rule, they could swap out the masks for a different color if they wanted (the Bears, for example, swap out their navy masks for gray when wearing their "Monsters of the Midway" throwbacks), so why not go the extra mile for color-coordinated accessories? Aside from that, though, this design looks sharp. Grade: A-minus
• The Miami Dolphins are marking their 50th season, and they're celebrating the occasion with a new 1966 throwback design, which will be worn on Dec. 14 against the Giants.
It's a good look. In fact, as many fans quickly opined on social media, it's a lot better than Miami's current uniform. In a perfect world, the team would admit that the current uni has been a failed experiment and just go back to the classic look, but that's not going to happen. But hey, at least the Dolphins will have a big visual upgrade for one game. Grade: A
• The NFL's longstanding uniform protocol holds that the home team can wear its colored or white jersey, and then the road team has to wear the opposite. But under a new initiative that was announced this week by Packers CEO Mark Murphy, the league will begin dabbling with "color on color" games, with both teams wearing colored jerseys, for Thursday night games. The program will be voluntary for the 2015 season and become mandatory in 2016.
This feels like a mixed bag. On the one hand, the rule requiring one team to wear white is antiquated. It dates to the days when the league wanted to ensure that fans could distinguish one team from another on black-and-white television. Nowadays there's no reason to avoid "color on color" games, as long as the two colors provide enough contrast. (Bills versus Chiefs? No problem. Chargers versus Giants? Not so much.)
But why create a new uniform protocol just for the Thursday games, and why make it mandatory? It feels too calculated, too gimmicky, and it gives the Thursday games something of a sideshow feel, like they're not as official as Sunday games. Just allow "color on color" throughout the league, make it an option instead of a requirement and be done with it. Grade: B
Paul Lukas will have a full rundown of all of this season's NFL uniform changes shortly before the start of the season. If you liked this column, you'll probably like his Uni Watch Blog, plus you can follow him on Twitter and Facebook. Want to learn about his Uni Watch Membership Program, be added to his mailing list so you'll always know when a new column has been posted or just ask him a question? Contact him here.