Football season is here! Whether you enjoy the sport itself or the social aspect of tailgating, football season offers a lot to get excited about.
One of the most underrated excitements of the season is the uniforms. Many NFL teams are switching up their signature looks this year with different helmet and jersey designs. Although the games and players take center stage, NFL jerseys also play a crucial role in football: they encompass a team’s identity and history and create community among the fans. Let’s take a look at some of the best NFL jersey designs of all time and explore the importance of a team’s uniform.
1976–1996 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Going 0–14 in its first season and not doing much better in the next 20 years, the Bucs began as a joke. The franchise redesigned its uniforms in blood red, pewter, and black and won some Super Bowls along the way, but fans still look fondly on the creamsicle orange that the inept Bucs teams of old donned. “Florida orange,” as the team called it, is a lovely shade that complements a suntan and gives any wearer some throwback chic.
1963–Present Raiders
Moving from Oakland to South Central and back before heading to Las Vegas, the Raiders have at least maintained sartorial continuity. The simple Silver & Black defined football culture at its grittiest with John Madden’s teams of the ’70s and went on to define hip-hop culture for decades with the L.A. Raiders of the 1980s. Raiders fans are infamous for, well, raiding their local Spirit Halloween stores before games, but you don’t need to dress as a skeleton or as Darth Vader to look dangerous in a classic Raiders jersey
1966–1988 Miami Dolphins
Only one team has gone undefeated en route to a Lombardi Trophy: Don Shula’s 1972 Dolphins. The team did it in style, with a classic uniform template in a nontraditional color: a vivid aquamarine teal that calls to mind sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean and the “old Florida” of pastel stucco ranch homes. The Dolphins aren’t going undefeated these days, but their style still is.
1975–1996 Houston Oilers
The Oilers left the Astrodome after 1996 to become today’s Tennessee Titans, but their “Luv Ya Blue” uniforms are still such a classic that the team’s replacement, the Houston Texans, is thinking about taking the color back for itself. Wearing periwinkle on the gridiron was more dazzling than intimidating, which makes the color a great fit for tailgate parties. Whether under the roof, under the sun, or off the field completely, it’s a classic uniform.
1964–1972 San Diego Chargers
Another powder-blue jersey lives on in fans’ hearts: the original Chargers uniform, a look that was so popular that the team brought out throwbacks for years before finally readopting powder blue as its primary color in 2020. It came a little late for the San Diego faithful, though: the Chargers moved back to Los Angeles after the 2016 season. Thankfully, we still have the memories—and the jersey inventory.
If you’re looking for some tailgating fashion tips, try finding yourself one of these jerseys. These five best NFL jersey designs of all time are some fashionable pieces of sportswear that embody each respective team’s identity, past, and community. NFL uniforms are more than just protective wear—they’re a monumental part of any team. This football season, keep an eye out for new or old notable jersey designs that’ll make fashion and sports history.