August 11, 2010

The Redskins Uniform Debate

If one presumes to blog he should probably opine on weighty matters of the day.

So, for the record:

I'm no Luddite. I keep an open mind. But I am not in favor of changes to the Redskins uniform.

Sure, wear the occasional throwback if that's what the league wants. There's no harm in seeing the spear once in a while; maybe even the gold pants, assuming they can find something gold and not mustard yellow. 

I suppose there could even be a new overall uniform "upgrade" that changes my mind. I can admit the Eagles and Buccaneers improved their lot.  Thing is, they needed fixing.  The Redskins' uniform does not. My fear is that beyond not being an improvement, any new design could end up godwawful. An embarrassment.

Like, oh ... what they did to the poor Patriots

* shudder *

So no black jerseys. Seriously. The XFL died for a reason.

No all-burgundy. This isn't college, why look like Virginia Tech?

Besides, one awesome football power in all-maroon per geographic region is enough.

Ahem. Go Hokies.

The all-white was okay. I wasn't over-the-top crazy about it, but did start to dig it a bit when it briefly caught fire during Gibbs II. That kind of died on the vine, though, when the presumptive ascent back up the NFL ladder ... descended again. Maybe we can try that one again on a limited basis down the road.

The Washington Redskins have a classic look. Until and unless some inspired artist and fan appreciative of the historical and emotional context involved designs a fresh, updated look that supplements the established, timeless look, rather than cast it aside in favor of marketing research ... leave well enough alone.

It ain't broke ...




Please, powers-that-be, don't screw it up trying to "fix" it.

And that's all I have to say about that.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

if they change it..it is so they can sell it

Mark "Om" Steven said...

Probably. Given how well the current classic look still "works," on every meaningful level, the only reason I can think to update would be commercial.

I can understand the temptation from a business standpoint, but the effect from an aesthetic and emotional standpoint on a whole lot of long-time fans would be negative. A lot of us actually do care about that stuff.

They'd be smart to weigh that carefully.

Hubbs said...

I'll probably cross-post this at ES, but you made a good case so I thought I'd throw my two cents in here, too. You're right, the Skins have a classic look, and radically changing it would be as unsettling as the Packers or the Colts radically changing their uniforms.

Many classic teams, however, have gone through one upgrade which I think has become almost universally recognized as a Good Idea, which is a color adjustment. Not a color change, just a color adjustment. This usually involves replacing obnoxiously bright colors that John Daly would wear on his pants with darker, smoother colors. The Eagles, Rams, Broncos, and Patriots have done this with very popular results. That doesn't mean the Skins would have to adopt a Flying Elvis logo or monochromatic uniforms, but darkening the colors to look more like the 70th anny combination (I wouldn't go quite THAT dark), or even Boston College/Florida State (again, strictly colors) would be a welcome change.

Mark "Om" Steven said...

Thoughtful commentary Hubbs.

No real disagreement here on a color tweak as opposed to a total redesign. It's just a matter of getting it "right." The obvious concern then being that getting it wrong would be, well ... like tofu or something.

Glenn X said...

Totally agree. All this talk of changing our unis mystifies me. Why?! There is no damn need to change it! It's not like we're the Bills or something.

SKF said...

I don't think the uniforms need a complete overhaul. But I do think they need to be "modernized" a bit. Keep the same look, but you have to update the look. We are running off a uniform that I want to say hasn't been changed since the mid-80's? Someone fact check that for me.. but it's been a long time.

I think something like what the Eagles did would look good. They kept their same overall look but modernized the uni's for today's game. Just my 2 cents.

A.E. said...

I think when a team goes back to a previous look, it can be an ok thing. The Giants and Jets did it with success. While the current uni's have been around about 30 years now, Its ok to change something like the Pants to gold. I noticed you didn't post these pictures.

http://wai.redskins.com/redskinsFile/team/bios/hanburger_chris.jpg

http://www.sportsmemorabilia.com/image_php_296644.jpg

These are classic and sharp looks. The thick stripes on the sleves. The same helmet

Anonymous said...

The Redskins are possibly introducing gold pants to the uniforms this year. A combination of gold pants along with the burgundy uniform would look great. I in fact do hope the Skins change their uniforms, but only a subtle change. I would like the pants and jersey sleeve stripes to match what is on the helmet.... and of course gold pants instead of white.