Could the Browns Update Their Uniforms?
Written By: Scott | Category: Cleveland Browns | Comments: 81
I was checking out the always excellent Uni Watch today, and I came across a post regarding the few teams in the NFL that have not gone the way of computerized helmet graphics and updated color schemes. Of course, the one team that was of focus was the Cleveland Browns; the logoless helmets and the orange and brown colorway that has been a staple for decades.
But then there were some interesting renditions of what the Browns could do if they opted to go the way of the new. The image to the right is only one of several mock appearances that the Browns could don within time.
One quote within the Uni Watch post caught my eye.
Should a team that really appears to have hit rock bottom like the Raiders think about mixing it up a little?
Rock bottom may very well be an understatement given the current situation. Is tradition really a factor these days? Some say that this team is not their Browns. Obviously, things have not been the same since the team left, and starting fresh may work. Would new uniforms help the “fresh” start?
A few more of the mocks are after the jump. What say ye, fans?
Author: Scott
Scott is a co-founder/editor of Waiting For Next Year who resides in Cleveland, Ohio. Feel free to follow him on Twitter or email him at scott@waitingfornextyear.com.Scott has written 1701 articles for Waiting for Next Year.
It kills me to admit this, but I really like those. Particularly the white ones.
I like the orange pants….and maybe throw that little elf in somewhere.
This is just like the OSU throwbacks Rock, hard to break with tradition, but I really do like those white ones. Patriots changed their jerseys and all of a sudden they became good (and maybe found a hidden gem in Tom Brady, but I think it was the jerseys all along)
Speaking of new uniforms… did anyone see the sweet ones Florida State was wearing this weekend?
sign me up. they are sweet. Change of jerseys = championship in a few years. Seemed to work for the Broncos and the Bucs
I think the brown/white pants looks good. White ones look a bit too Denver for my liking, but still look pretty decent. I’d like to see the stripes still on the arms, but as long as the helmet doesn’t change, it’s all fair game IMO.
i really like them
As long as the helmets are left alone I’m good with it. All three of those look good to me. They could do one throwback game each year as well and break out the traditional jerseys. It’d be an awesome idea to break out the throwback (current) jerseys during a Ravens game that has divisional implications.
Looks Bowling Green’s jersey’s to me.
http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/zips/wp-content/uploads/2007/06/bowling-green.jpg
http://www.betfirms.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/Bowling-Green-2009-Predictions.jpg
also the mock-ups prove brady quinn is the qb of the future! book it!
@nullster: That’s true, and I don’t know the specific reason why, but I don’t feel near the connection to the Browns uniform that I do to the Ohio State uniform.
I fully realize I’m fairly hypocritical on this, but I wouldn’t be horribly offended if the Browns updated their unis.
I could do without the piping on the jerseys but I think those look good, generally. Like the all brown and the brown/orange too.
I’m with Rock on tOSU unis. Not at all a fan of those Nebraska duds they rocked this week.
I really like them all. I could support a uni switch
Post updated with some orange variations…
I do like those jerseys. Though I don’t see that B logo being used on the uniform. It is on a lot of the women’s apparel and it is associated with Butch Davis (like the big inflatable helmet they use to run out of)
I’m ok with this. We’ve been consistently “awarded” the title of “Ugliest jerseys in the NFL.” Why not update it a bit? I like these mockups.
Brown or white jerseys only. White paints ONLY
never change this
The orange ones, however = no.
If they’re organized like this:
1 2 3
4 5 6
I like numbers 1 and 4. 2 is a bit too much brown. I agree with Denny about number 3 looking too Denver. Number 5 actually looks like a Bengals practice jersey or something. Not sure why I don’t like 6, but I don’t.
Im not a huge fan, I dont like the football on the shoulders. Also I feel like all of these need a little more orange trim, otherwise the helmet kinda sticks out like a sore thumb, imho.
let it be know that i am usually a sucker for tradition…
5 and 6 were actually mockups rejected by Oliver Stone for his movie Any Given Sunday. He said they were to fake and campy looking.
@ #8 The Browns got their colors from Bowling Green in the first place.
Oh, I also like the one in the body of the article, Brown top w/ white pants.
Honestly, is there a uniform that Brady WOULDN’T look dreamy in?
NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!! Tradition is all we have left!
Screw with our uni’s and we’re just some team on the field with absolutely no connection to the fans.
Get rid of the turd pants and go back to our beautiful, traditional colors.
I can’t get behind them. To me, it just doesn’t look as good as keeping it simple (with the current helmet):
http://images.art.com/images/-/Otto-Graham-Dante-Lavelli—Photofile–C10108357.jpeg
all this “tradition” crap…we haven’t been good FOREVER. Every team had a tradition that they eventually will leave behind. The packers won’t even have those jersey looks forever. Seriously, give the team a fresh start cause this same old crap isn’t working. Maybe we can have the Ravens wear throwbacks if they make the playoffs, they can wear the old Browns jerseys!
btw, i’m pulling for the brown/white pants and the all white, they look freakin sick!
@27: Why not? There are some teams that haven’t changed their look and have looked fine, and their on-field performances are all over the place (Yankees, Cubs (home), Red Sox (home), Colts, hockey’s Original Six, Celtics, etc.). The Lions changed their look somewhat radically this year; how’s that working out for them? Heck, the Giants and Jets went back to classic 50/60s looks, which I think look much better than what they wore in the 80s.
However, I did find this one funny (sans brown pants, which truly are evil):
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2536/3969897607_f094b8b125_o.jpg
Long live Brownie!!!!
@ #22 I never knew that. I knew that their first training camp was on Bowling Green’s campus, but I guess I never put 2 and 2 together.
All those teams (save for the Cubs and for the NHL teams I know nothing about) are much more successful than the Browns overall. I say change em up!
put me in the camp with alex and mr. cleaveland. NO!!
in fact, go back to white on white for the first four home games.
the only change i would make to the socks/shoes/pants: make the socks solid brown, wear all black shoes, take the stripe off the pants.
less is more.
I like the new looks – but the orange jerseys won’t work unless they match the helmet precisely (or get the helmet to match the jersey, whatever).
Also, not a tOSU fan, but their throwbacks are much better than the glitter helmet and high school stickers. They were a big improvement.
More orange is always a good thing in my opinion – except orange unis with orange pants – God help us if that happens.
@ Matt C – you mean these jerseys look better than the more traditional OSU jerseys? Methinks you are incorrect:
I’ll pass. I like the uni’s they got now way better than these. They need to incorporate a logo into what they have now. Possibly a bulldog or elf or something of that nature.
I’m with you, Mr. Cleveland – 100% against a jersey change. Maybe as an alternate jersey every once in a while (like the opposite of a throw-back jersey night), but the traditional jerseys gotta stay.
I don’t mind any of those designs, and would be fine with a uniform update, with two qualifiers:
1. No changes to the colors.
2. No logo on the helmet. We’re unique among all franchises in this regard–keep it that way.
@2 “maybe throw that little elf in somewhere.”
At kicker, maybe?
PLEASE CHANGE THE UNI’S!!!! The current one’s are old and outdated. The Cards changed there’s and look what happened!!!
Could do without the orange jerseys, although I’ve always dug the orange pants. The first four designs look good though. Jersey changes have worked for a number of teams (NE, Denver, Seahawks, Cards, Rams) at various points. Its obvious the the current culture of losing needs to be changed in Berea, why not start with the unis. .
Boo. They look more like the freaking Bengals. As Tevye says: “Tradition, Tradition…Tradition!”
NO, NO, a million times NO!!
I would love to see us go with something like what Clemson has. Their jerseys are pretty sharp.
I love the idea of new jerseys. I’m a fan of the big one/top middle/top right/bottom left. If fashion counted for anything, those would win. Home unis should be the big one that Scott posted on the top, and then away should be top right.
Maybe this will break the curse?
P.S. RIP MWL. 2010!
A new stadium has not even worked. The Browns need smarter ownership.
I’m very open minded about making changes to the jerseys, but these are NOT very good options. Someone put it that they look like BGSU jerseys and they’re right. To me, the Browns should keep it simple, and there are ways to improve the jersey without tacky lines and logos all over the place.
I like any of the six better than our current road uniform. Our plain brown pants have got to go. Talk about high school… Why in the world do we not wear the all white? That is a part of our team’s history.
I’d also like to say this: The plain orange helmet is going nowhere, and there will be no logo added, and that is a good thing. Thus, nothing flashy is going to look good with the traditional plain orange helmet. Small changes could be good, but lets not go crazy with lines and complete tackiness all over the place, much like these examples.
No Logo! Go back to orange bottoma and brown tops- no need to medernize anything
What up Bill – I know you!
Thought I would hate them all and I actually like them all. Even the orange ones (but on a very limited basis).
lol… hey mr. cleaveland and alex! i’m 47. how old are you guys? just guessing, you’re in my neighborhood?
assuming yes, how have we failed the heirs to browns fandom? i LOVED that we had the simplest helmets… took pride that we didn’t pimp out or numbers/logos. because it was the football that matters and window dressing diminishes that.
are we the last generation?
i don’t even remember paul brown except as coach of the bengals. never saw jim brown play. but i remember collier … we’ve lost our way since then.
[rambling now] speaking of losing our way.. let’s stop picking from the belichick tree or the looking at the steeler organization. we need to get back to OHIO football. what miss on josh mcdaniels — massilon coach’s son?? are you kidding?
ohio perfected football. randy lerner, look in your own backyard. i don’t who the czar is, but i hope he’s been to many ohio high school football games.
seriously… there’s a reason the hall of fame is canton. let’s look within.
your friend jim.
http://web.me.com/mburgermeister/tricoretest2/portfolio.htm
whoops… that was not a cheap plug, though feel free to talk to me about oracle and storage optimization… –> correct embed here: http://files.me.com/mburgermeister/vtourt
Leave the storied Browns uniform alone!!!
Randy Lerner has already screwed them up enough with those butt ugly brown pants and solid brown socks.
Wear the same uniform that all the Browns’ greats wore!!!
Brown w/ Orange Pants look nice…
I honestly am not a huge fan of the newer jerseys that try to get every color to make an impact on the jersey. I like seeing the classic White pants, white top, or white pants brown top. I don’t see any need to try to force orange into the jersey.
@ 35 Denny,
Hey, those dudes ruled an entire freaking GALAXY in those threads. Tell me you wouldn’t mind their run at the top.
Seriously, though, drop the stickers. You’re better than that.
love it
I think we should go to permanent throwback to anything ‘64 and older. Could bring good mojo…
Ahhhh! A vote for no change here. I can’t believe what I’m reading. The arguments that we should keep our helmet because it’s unique but change everything else…. c’monnnn. Wantin to have your cake and eat it too is not what bein a Browns fan is about. I suppose you all think 60 minutes should have an updated theme song but still incorporate a ticking clock. When we finally win, it will mean all that much more to do it wearing the uniforms that were along for all the ups and downs and downs and downs.
I suspect the Browns are more than a fashion designer away from a super bowl. Perhaps the focus should therefore remain on changing the performance of those in the uniforms rather than changing the suits.
What say Cleveland avoids sinking to purchasing unis like Cin-city and Denver from the Circus Supply Discount Store and remains connected with the winners of yesteryear? The distinctive thing about Cleveland is that connection. We have a proud heritage.
Along those lines, lose the idiotic brown pants and stick to gear Otto Graham would have found in his locker.
I don’t like the idea of a uniform change. Besides, any jersey can look better in the picture above, but imagine the new uni creeping up over Shawn Rogers’ gut as he is huffing and puffing on the sideline and nothing looks good then.
Those look horrible, all of them
You’ve got a fair point about the galaxy MattC, but I wonder if the BCS recognizes the legitimacy of ruling the galaxy, or whether it’s considered a non-BCS conference.
I’m a fan of the stickers, personally. I wouldn’t mind seeing them go back to the old giant stickers (see pictures of Archie for that).
@ Fern – I was never promised cake with my Browns fandom, and don’t appreciate you bringing this cake that I don’t have in to the equation. It’s just before 8 AM, and all I have is cake on my mind now :/
New uniforms must keep the sleeve stripes. To me those are as iconic as the logo-less helmets.
@ #45 – Vince: I join you in your sorrows. The last two hours of work & the drive home are now a vast sea of emptiness. And Punt my friend….And Punt.
I’ve LONG been a proponent of the Brown jersey/Orange pants look. THAT’S a throwback right there. Kardiac Kids anyone. I’m all for a complete overhaul of our uniforms. All of my jersey’s are useless anyways since none of them are of current Browns players. I’m a big fan of the numbers on the helmet as well. It’s a little too “Alabama” for some people, but I like when they do that.
I think everyone is overlooking the real uniform issue… there’s no one on this team worth buying a jersey of! Other than that, I don’t mind the new mock ups. Not crazy about the football B. I think this Browns regime is going to seriously need to consider a uniform change for probably the same reason the Lions did last year: revenue and identity change. Who’s seriously going to buy a Browns jersey next year assuming there’s no change? Randy needs to make some money so he can pay for Romeo, Phil, George, and Eric while they’re vacationing in the Bahammas and not coaching football.
Wow… what a response. This is obviously a passionate issue with Browns fans.
Personally, as long as they don’t touch the helmet, I wouldn’t mind an update to the uniform. They can’t touch the helmet, though… well, unless they put the number on it. I love that throwback uniform with the number on the helmet.
Srsly?
@Denny – I do apologize, but I hope you find some cake and that it is simple and un-iced, just like Jim Brown used to eat in his logo-less helmet. None of that high in sugar, ornately flower decorated cake like the Broncos and Bengals undoubtedly enjoy.
I didn’t read all 72 comments so forgive me if I’m being redundant. These are awful. They look like a college team.
Gotta love Clevelanders adamantly defending our Super Bowl-less heritage. Sure don’t try anything new this decade, and that includes winning. God forbid we change the uni’s… when guys my age have not even had the experience of seeing winning football.
Any uniform update HAS to include the original “brownie elf” in the design or as a logo–classic.
I would also like to see an alternate helmet which goes back to their original “white” helmet from the 1946-49 era in the AAFC—white helmet with the “elf” as the helmet logo would look sweet…
Not bad. I like those.
BUT, they have to keep the helmet solid orange. No numbers, no logos.
The orange helmet is the Browns signature. Don’t mess with it.
Why don’t you just wear the Denver uniform while you are at it?
No, no, no,and no! If anything make minor adjustments to the current unis, like orange threading on brown jerseys (alternatley brown on white), stripes on the brown pants like those on the white ones. Keep the sleeve stripes. No outlined numbers. Simple touches like that can go a Looong way.
Love it, but I gotta say, I want a new helmet too. Solid Orange or Brown or White, with a single stripe down the middle and the player number on the side, ala Buckeye throwbacks, ala Browns throwbacks. Nice.
So what was so bad about my metro sexual comment?
I’m fine with these. When the Browns left we fought to keep our history and our colors. As long as we got or colors, what’s wrong with a little update on the jerseys? The Cavs updated when they drafted LeBron and now the Browns have 11 draft picks coming in next April…now is the time for change (regime & jersey!).