That being said, I think they left a bit on the table here. That doesn’t mean it is great though, it just goes to show how BAD the previous number font was! The font was bad and the attempt at 3-D lettering was abysmal. To the untrained eye, you may not see much of a difference here, but believe me, the number font is way better than the old jerseys. Number fonts/colors: New Stripes = 7.0 (Old Stripes = 1.0) +6.0 Sam Greene/The Enquirer via Imagn Content Services, LLC Good name plates are like good referees, you shouldn’t notice them. They got rid of the outline on the lettering, which works, and most importantly, the nameplate doesn’t draw your attention away from the jersey itself, and that is a good thing. It basically means that the nameplate is not noticeable, which it shouldn’t be. When it comes to name plates, a 7.5 is about as high as you can get. Nameplate fonts/color: New Stripes = 7.5 (Old Stripes = 5.0) +2.5 Sam Greene/The Enquirer via Imagn Content Services, LLC The Bengals were able to keep the classic tiger stripes, and all three colors are simple and clean, yet unique. This is a massive upgrade! In my opinion, the Bengals went from the 30th best uniform in the NFL to a top-ten placement. Other than the color rush jersey, the highest I scored any of the previous jerseys was 4.5 (orange). Overall, I feel like the new jerseys were a strong B+ / A-, and hence the 9.0 score. Overall design/look/feel: New Stripes = 9.0 (Old Stripes avg. = 18.2/60) +33.3 Sam Greene/The Enquirer via Imagn Content Services, LLC Jersey Element score New Stripes = 51.5/60 (Old Stripes avg. For fellow jersey nerds like me, I hope you enjoy! The scale is the same, 0-10, where 0 = the worst in the NFL and 10 = the best in the NFL. Unlike the previous jerseys, all of the new jerseys are the same design, so I will score each element, and then the jersey as a whole. With a great jersey, all of these elements fit together perfectly. Overall design/look/feel: How do all the elements fit together. To be effective, their use needs to be small and complimentary and not take away from the jersey itself. Use of logos: Use of secondary logos can add a lot to a jersey.
Rarely can nameplate design help make a jersey better, but a bad name plate can certainly take away from a jersey. Nameplate font: Not nearly as important as the number font. Number font: Often overlooked, the number font is the second most important feature, especially on football jerseys where the numbers are so large and prominent. Simple and unique are not mutually exclusive and designers of the best jerseys walk this line perfectly. Unique: All great uniforms are also unique. Remember to KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid)! This is where most teams fail on jersey designs. Simple: When it comes to jerseys, less truly is more. After sleeping on it, here are my thoughts on the New Stripes.Īs a reminder, here is what I look for in a great uniform. So, by design, I waited 24 hours before working on this piece, so I could render a well thought out opinion, rather than an emotional reaction. I wanted to soak them in, see them in different lighting, sleep on it, give them the opportunity to grow and me, and then figure out how I felt. I didn’t feel like an immediate reaction to the jerseys would be prudent. Before rendering an opinion or judgement-on anything-I believe it is important to collect information, digest the information and think it all the way through, and then render said opinion and/or judgement.
perhaps my initial reaction is one of many reasons I was not selected for a seat at the release!Īs you very well may notice, my analysis of the new kits is dropping much later than most others, and that is on purpose. That being said, despite my initial thoughts on the leaked jerseys, I was cautiously optimistic. As Marvin Lewis famously used to say, “I see better than I hear,” and what I have seen from this organization the last 30+ years, is a history of poor effort, poor decision making, poor PR and a poor feel for the fans by the front office. I know there is a lot of new excitement around this team and the changes in the way it is being run-those changes are evident in their top notch twitter game-but this team and this organization have conditioned me (and many others) to expect the worst and expect to be disappointed. Leading up to the release of the Bengals’ New Stripes, I was nervous. So, needless to say, Monday was like Christmas morning for me! As I said in my review of the out-going uniforms, I am a jersey nerd.