Five Years of the GUD

by Larry Schmitt

It’s been a while since I’ve written for the blog, and the Gridiron Uniform Database’s fifth anniversary seemed like a good occasion to come back.

I still remember the GUD’s debut on Sunday June 11, 2011 when it was featured on the front page of Uniwatch.

http://www.uni-watch.com/2011/06/12/tim-and-bill-and-robs-nfl-uniform-project-part-iii/

Having been a fan of football history and uniforms since my teens, this was exactly the kind of site I’d hoped would surface one day. I happily clicked away, browsed and explored for hours that Sunday morning, savoring every visual treat.

Of course, much has changed since then.

Originally the site only went back as far as 1933. The years 1920 – 1932 were added incrementally over the summer of 2012, and many of the templates were empty, as photos for that era, especially for the small town teams, are scarce.

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/1924.shtml

According to the sidebar on Bill’s Update page there have been 1,260 updates to the database’s content since a running count was initiated in January 2012. While many were new discoveries, the vast majority represent a collection of adjustments, refinements, tweaks and in some cases, major overhauls that resulted from the relentless and continuous research to provide the most comprehensive and accurate visual library possible.

While there may be times the GUD appears dormant, nothing can be further from the truth.

Most visitors to the GUD are familiar with the names Tim Brulia (historian & researcher), Rob Holecko (webmaster) and Bill Schaefer (graphic artist & researcher), the official owners of the GUD. There also is a network of GUD frequenters who volunteer their time and assist in large-scale projects and/or forward the occasional historical nugget that might lead to a correction.

You can visit the GUD Forum where some of this takes place. The Forum goes all the way back to the GUD’s second day, June 12, 2011. It serves as a quasi-time capsule to many of the early activities, and you can see some of the source material for what is now represented in the database.

http://gridironuniforms.forumotion.com/

My first contribution to the GUD was offering a color photo of the Giants Charlie Conerly in 1948, which led to a correction of New York’s leather helmets for that season.

 

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/images/1948_NYGiants.png

That turned out to be the first of many for me. I often spend my free hours perusing the internet for pro football history, whether it’s statistics, player biographies or old photos. Whenever I came across something I thought was interesting I’d forward it to Bill and Tim for their consideration. Over time, they tutored me on developing a sharper eye for researching, a major part of which was identifying mis-dated photos (you’d be surprised how many exist in the Getty and AP catalogs), as well as discerning the subtleties of interpreting colors from black-and-white photos.

  

Why does blue sometimes appear darker than red, and other times red appear darker than blue? The best answer I can offer is: it depends on who took the picture, what type of equipment was used, if filters were involved, the type of film and how it was developed.

In March of 2013 I was invited (and possibly may have even been the stimulus for) my first large scale GUD project, which we termed “The Great Belt Overhaul.” What simply began as a casual surfing of old Earl Campbell photos during my lunch hour at work dovetailed into the correction of at least a dozen teams belt colors, most of which spanned the 1960’s through the 1980’s.

http://gridironuniforms.forumotion.com/t558-1981-houston-oilers?highlight=oilers

At the time the GUD commonly showed teams with black belts as a sort of default. While discovering that the Houston Oilers belts were white with white pants and blue with blue pants, we noticed that the Pittsburgh Steelers varied yellow and black belts for a similar period. While researching the Steelers we found similar evidence for the New Orleans Saints, and while researching the Saints we found that...well, you get the gist of it. One of our inside saying that we still use came from this endeavor...”While looking for one thing, I found something else...”

It was also at this time that most of my efforts were transferred to email, rather than the forum. I do occasionally add to a thread in the General Comments section of the forum, just for the fun of it. It’s been going for about three-and-a-half years now.

http://gridironuniforms.forumotion.com/t540-mud-games

Since that time, some of the other large scale projects undertaken have been the addition of the USFL database in November 2013, the addition of officials’ uniforms in the May of 2014, 2015’s deep-dive project into newspaper archives that resulted in the GUD having a nearly complete photographic record of preseason games dating back to 1950, and the debut of AFL II earlier this year.

You’ll also notice that the ongoing endeavor to represent every regular and post season game on a weekly basis currently goes back to 1937, save for a small handful of games from the 1940’s where we haven’t discovered a photo yet.

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/weekly/1937/1937wk2.shtml

My conservative estimation is that the GUD currently displays 14,320 weekly matchups in full color – where else are you going to find information like that? And you the reader can be confident that what is displayed is accurate, as no stone had been left unturned while researching libraries and newspaper archives. If a photo cannot be found to back it up, then the templates are left blank. Guesstimations are not good enough.

To that end, while most of us conduct our research online through newspaper archives and libraries, Tim has taken several sojourns to the Library of Congress in Washington DC and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.

While I most enjoy researching the first three decades of pro football – essentially the leather helmet era – I have one modern era project that I remember fondly. One weekend morning in April 2014, while casually looking over photos of the Dan Fouts-era Chargers, I noticed some irregularities in the orientation of San Diego’s lightning bolts on their pants.

I broadened my search to include the 1960’s and found that not only were they facing multiple directions – they could be forward or backward and upward or downward – but over the years the bolts themselves changes shape and size.

I began saving photos in files broken down by era, and while the bolt placements was often erratic, I was able to nail down the style of the bolts definitively. Did you know from 1961-65 the bolts on San Diego’s pants contained eight points on each side, while all other years through 1987 they had seven?

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/images/1964_SanDiego.png

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/images/1971_SanDiego.png

Or that the only year with uniform bolt orientation was 1984?

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/images/1984_SanDiego.png

I’m not sure if Bill recalls this project as fondly as I do. Initially frustrated at the challenging work, he diligently forged a system - over the course of a full year - to accurately present what you see in the San Diego database today. His ultimate balance of persistence and patience paid off in a big way.

Bill himself handled the 1992-present day Chargers bolts research, and along the way picked up on number font variations.

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/images/1993_SanDiego.png

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/images/1995_SanDiego.png

I guarantee you won’t get this attention to detail anywhere else.

So, what’s next? I don’t want to give away too much, but sometime in the near future, the weekly matchups are likely to extend back a few seasons further, and the other AFL’s will ultimately take their rightful place to complete the presentation of every major professional football league over the past 96 years.

There also has been a recent boon in discoveries of missing teams from the 1920’s. Many of the templates that appear blank today will be replaced by full color representations of what these pioneers of the game we all love today wore on the gridiron in near anonymity over 85 years ago. 

Ongoing corrections and enhancements are always taking place. Recently, many teams have had their catalogues refined with what we call the two-tone effect on their pants (the result of two differing materials, usually with the front being a shiny, satin-like quality). 

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/images/1975_LosAngeles.png

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/images/1971_Dallas.png 

There also has been a recent emphasis on fine-tuning jersey number fonts and sizes as well as leather helmet styles. Some of these differences can be seen in places like the weekly matchups as gifs when multiple styles were worn concurrently.

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/weekly/1941/1941wk3.shtml

The research section also is updated regularly. Among the information readily available is a log of every instance of and NFL team wearing white at home since 1957 and what is believed to be the most comprehensive representation of helmet decals anywhere.

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/research.shtml

Rest assured, all of these will be updated continually as the 2016 NFL season proceeds.

Earlier this year, Rob gave the GUD itself a face lift. The front page has been reorganized to better display the content that is available. Several of the pages inside are now sortable, making navigation easier.

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/nflchampionships.shtml

He also added some new features that highlight historical facts and firsts.

http://www.gridiron-uniforms.com/GUD/firsts.shtml

All that great information aside, what I appreciate most about the GUD is that it is a community. Right from the very beginning Tim, Rob and Bill welcomed all visitors not only to enjoy the content that was presented, but take part in the collaborative journey that is the GUD. They allowed an obsessive fan like myself to feel like a part of the group.

I'm looking forward to the next five years and all the discoveries that await us!

We're still here!

by Tim Brulia

Yes, folks. The Gridiron Uniform Database is still very much alive.

Sorry we have not been blogging as much recently, but we are still quite active. If you go here, you can see all of the recent updates that are made to the GUD. This will detail all of the changes that have been made to the GUD, including the before and after visuals as well as the documentation that made the revision(s) possible.

Please also note that we continue to post a daily uniform matchup from the past on our Facebook and Twitter pages.

Here's a sample:

Don't worry. We've never really gone away. And yes, we do anticipate some additions to the site as the winter passes into spring, and the spring passes into summer and then the 2016 NFL Season!

Rest assured, the GUD will be here for you all year long!

Wild Card Weekend 2015 uniform rankings

by Tim Brulia


4) Chiefs-Texans: KC in white/white, HOU in navy/navy. Not my choice for the colors chosen by either team, but something we have to deal with. Chiefs apparently going with good mojo by sticking to the all white look. Again, not my favorite look with the white jerseys, but at least KC is staying away from the white socks with this set. As for the Texans, I do like the all navy look, and with the Chiefs staying all white, maybe it swayed the Texans way of thinking from wearing white pants. All in all, a so-so pairing, not as good as its potential.

3) Seahawks-Vikings: SEA in white/navy, MIN in purple/white. Quite a frigid game in the Twin Cities. And this match was cool, too. Seahawks with a variety of pant colors to accompany the white jerseys made the second best choice by going with the navy pants. I don't think the navy bottoms are quite as good as the gray ones, but the navys expose the neon green trim moreso than either the gray or white trunks. The Vikings in purple over white is the safe choice over all purple, and also the wise pick. All purple would have jarring for a playoff game. As such, this pairing is really good. Good colors!

2) Packers-Redskins: GB in white/yellow, WSH in burgundy/yellow. These are good unis, but the pairing of them just gives off a little too much yellow. Packer helmets and pants, Redskin pants and a good dollop of yellow trim on the helmets, jerseys (though kept to a minimum) and on the burgundy based socks. On their own, these unis are natty. The Packers carry off the yellow in a good way. It overrides the green as the dominant color when wearing white tops. The Redskins burgundy is sleek both on the helmets and jerseys. Though the striping patterns on all four quadrants of the uni is haphazard to a fault, the colors override the flaws. But merged into combat, the yellows just are a bit much.

1) Steelers-Bengals: PIT in white/black, CIN in black/white. While the game was mean and nasty, the unis were not. Both sides in triple color, the Steelers in black/white/yellow, the Bengals in orange/black/white. The Steelers in white somehow to me makes the yellow striping and nameplates really bright. Black is just the numbers and feather striping on the yellow based sleeve stripes. put on the familiar yellow pants with the thick black side stripes and it's a sharp set. The Bengals match up quite well with the black and orange tiger striping. Going all black would have slogged this matchup a bit, so staying white trousered was a common sense move. A good pairing,

Four more games to check out next week. See ya then!

Week 17 2015 Weekly Uniform Rankings

by Tim Brulia


16) Titans-Colts: TEN in white/white, IND in blue/white. Three words: Too. Much. White. That is all.

15) Ravens-Bengals: BAL in white/black, CIN in black/black. Three words: Too. Much. Black. That is all,

14) Steelers-Browns: PIT in white/yellow, CLE in brown/white. It's decent, but until the Browns do something about the near unreadable orange numbers on brown jerseys, this will continue to drag all others into the rabbit hole.

13) Jaguars-Texans: JAX in white/black, HOU in navy/white. A modern matchup that leaves me a little empty. Mind you, these aren't bad combos, but something gets lost when they're paired up.

12) Raiders-Chiefs: OAK in white/silver, KC in red/white. A lot - likely most - of my peers think this one is dandy. Not me. I just find the Raiders white jerseys really dull. The Chiefs in red? Sweet, of course, but the more I see this matchup, the more my senses dull.

11) Seahawks-Cardinals: SEA in alternate gray/gray, ARI in red/white. I'm still not sure about the all gray of the Seahawks. Personally, I'd kinda like to see the gray tops mixed with either the white pants or the navys, just for a bit of variety. Cardinals? um, yeah, red over white.

10) Saints-Falcons: NO in white/gold, ATL in red/white. It's a good one. Not so great. The Falcons have a sharp color combo (though the swirly trim leave a lot to be desired) when in red. The Saints look swell in white over gold. Together. I'm not too thrilled.

9) Buccaneers-Panthers: TB in white/pewter, CAR in black/silver. Dullish, but the spark of the bright trim colors on both sides (red, silver, orange, light blue) keeps this one from the nether reaches. Better than I would normally expect.

8) Lions-Bears: DET in white/silver, CHI in navy/white. Sharp, but not quite the same as if the colors were reversed. But, it's NFC North and that's half the battle.

7) Eagles-Giants: PHI in white/green, NYG in blue/gray. Thanks, Eagles, for the green pants. Sets up well with the Giants blue over gray set. Make this one a better than average battle.

6) Redskins-Cowboys: WSH in burgundy/yellow, DAL in white/mint, We saw this one earlier. It's a great one, but I wish a slight tweak would be in order to ease the potential of monotony. Such as the Cowboys in the color rush white britches, or the 'Skins in their "throwback" white trousers?

5) Rams-49ers: STL in white over navy, SF in red/gold. Smart of the Rams to go with the navy pants. Offers sharp contrast and lets the colors flow brilliantly. Keeps the onus of the gold on the Niners,w here it belongs. Pushes the navys and reds to the forefront and that's a boost.

4) Chargers-Broncos: SD in white/navy, DEN in orange/white. On a combo I like, like the Broncos in orange, it takes a near disaster or something that just doesn't work right by the opponent to downgrade (see last week against the Bengals). The Chargers white over navy, while not high on my food chain, seems to add the right amount of spice to this uni dish. So, it's a winner.

3) Vikings-Packers: MIN in white/purple, GB in green/yellow. Like this one, almost love it. Very similar matchup style when the Bears invade the Frozen Tundra. But I feel navy and orange blend better than purple and yellow do against green and yellow. Still, as long as the Vikes go with purple pants, this will always score big on my watch.

2) Jets-Bills: NYJ in white/green, BUF in blue/blue. Remember earlier in the season when the NFL begat Color Rush with these two? Well, we got ¾ color rush here. white over green and all blue and frankly, this looks a lot better. Some might prefer the Bills in blue over white, but the more color the better. And not contrived, either.

1) Patriots-Dolphins: NE in white/navy, MIA in aqua/aqua. Well, it took the better part of an entire season, but the Dolphins finally showed their potential. Instead of the dreadful all whites, the Dolphins make the most of their unique shade of darkness with full on aqua. Just so much better and it really accentuated the Patriots white over navy and breathes some life into that predictable set. Koo-does!!

Thanks for putting up with my thoughts for the season. I'll continue with the Wild card games next week. See ya then!

Week 16 2015 Weekly Uniform Rankings

by Tim Brulia


Well, at least Color Rush is over.

Colts-Dolphins: IND in blue/white, MIA in white/white. Yawn. A big fat yawn. I can only (nod), say that (nod, z) this one (z, nod, z)...put me (z, z, nod) to slee...(Z Z Z, snore, Z, etc.).. Won't even dignify with a pic.

Texans-Titans: HOU in white/navy, TEN in navy/navy. Whoa. Way too much navy here. a helmet, a jersey, both sets of pants, both sets of socks. 6 of 8 elements in navy? The other 2 in white? Not my cup of tea.

Bengals-Broncos: CIN in white/black, DEN in orange/white. OK, I'll explain, Too much orange. When the Broncos wear the orange jerseys, I am normally in love. When the Bengals wear white over black, I revel in it. But here, orange helmets, orange shoulders (on a white jersey), and orange jerseys all combine forces? I see orange overload. And thus, two otherwise sharp looks combine to fall to the bottom of the wishing well.

Jaguars-Saints: JAX in white/black, NO in black/gold. Even though the Saints did right by wearing gold pants instead of the all black look, it's not enough to keep it from the lower level. Jags somehow need to make to teal stand out more next season.

Rams-Seahawks: STL in white/white, SEA in navy/navy. I'm not sure where to turn here. The Rams don't wear gold pants anymore. The Seahawks won't wear white or gray pants at home anymore. Yet either or would have spruced this encounter so much. At least the Rams stayed away from navy pants, which would have rendered this matchup as a dullard.

Chargers-Raiders: SD in white/navy, OAK in black/silver. The basics, 2015 edition. Chargers with white over navy blending smoothly with the Raiders familiar black over silver. A bit more powder blue would have spiced this up a tad.

Steelers-Ravens: PIT in white/yellow, BAL in black/white. No issues with the Steelers so much, but the Ravens in black over white...well, it's a nice combo, makes purple as a trim color pop a bit, but the Ravens are best in purple as the main uni color. There's just too much black as a primary color these days in the NFL.

Patriots-Jets: NE in white/navy, NYJ in green/white. The colors are nice, different, but quite familiar. Is this a case of "familiarity breeds contempt?" Perhaps. There certainly are worse matchups, even this week.

Cowboys-Bills: DAL in white/mint, BUF in blue/white. A lot of blue, but it is good blue, especially the Bills blue. While my passion for the Bills blue has died down a bit, it is still sweet nectar and beefs up most any opponent's threads. Such is the case with the Cowboys.

Packers-Cardinals: GB in white/yellow, ARI in red/white. Should this be higher? Perhaps. Am I ticked because the Cardinals shelved the red pants for 2015? Perhaps. But I still like this one. Just not as much as I could or should.

Browns-Chiefs: CLE in white/brown, KC in red/white. I like this one. But I just can't get it any higher on the ladder. Great mix of colors; red, orange, brown, yellow. If played earlier in the season when the autumn colors were awash, this might have been at or near the top.

Bears-Buccaneers: CHI in white/navy, TB in red/pewter. Tradition, meet modern. And this is a glorious matchup of color. Red, navy, pewter, orange. The Bucs regular jerseys are busy, to be sure, but coupled with the Bears stark but unique white over navy, it's a Bingo sort of uni goodness.

Giants-Vikings: NYG in white/gray, MIN in purple/white. This game marks the end of a two year stint where the Vikings played home games outdoors. I say that because the purple looks so good in the natural elements. This was a gem. Blue, purple, red, yellow, gray. It's a great meld of color against a very cold night.

Redskins-Eagles: WSH in white/yellow, PHI in green/white. What would have been sweet here would have the Eagles in black pants. Would have been a jolt for sure, but would have made the green a little...flashy? Be that as it may, this matchup is above average.

49ers-Lions: SF in white/gold, DET in honolulu blue/silver. This...just works. A lot of metallic splendor, but done right. Helmets and pants on both squads match and the reds and blues here are a worthy mix.

Panthers-Falcons: CAR in white/white, ATL in red/white. A lot of white to be sure, but the Falcons red and black as well as the Panthers silver, light blue and silver make for visual goodness.

That wraps up Week 16.

Till next time, take care and wishing all a safe and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Week 15 2015 Weekly Uniform Ranking and...

by Tim Brulia


16) Cardinals-Eagles: ARI in white/white, PHI in alternate black/black. Just...disappointing. The Cardinals disappoint by shelving their red pants. The Eagles disappoint with the all black get up. This just makes me sad to see.

15) Falcons-Jaguars: ATL in white/white, JAX in black/black. Quoting the horse in a Ren & Stimpy cartoon, "No sir, I don't like it." The starkness of all white and all black does me no happy, happy, joy, joy. True, some nice trim colors of red, teal and gold help some, but not enough for me to utter, "Groovy, man,"

14) Dolphins-Chargers: MIA in whte/white, SD in navy/white. After thrilling us all with the dynamic throwback last week, the Dolphins sadly revert to form with the boring white ensemble against the Chargers in their smart navy over white. Aqua pants, where ever art thou???

13) Titans-Patriots: TEN in white/navy, NE in navy/silver. Mucho navy gravy. Titans could have mustered up the columbia blue pants and this would have improved the matchup. A bit. Both teams have red in their color schematic, but it is mainly an afterthought.

12) Bills-Redskins: BUF in white/white, WSH in burgundy/yellow. A dramatic difference a pair of pants make. For if the Bills had chosen their super blue britches for this encounter, it may have been enough for the head of the class. No, this dull set was chosen and not even the Redskins lovely burgundy over yellow could save this one from the lower level.

11) Lions-Saints: DET in white/silver, NO in black/black. A bit torn am I. Would the Saints have been better off with the gold pants in this game? Would that have made for too much metallic hues? Is the all black too strong a contrast to the Lions rather pallid away colors? I think this all washed out and this game is slotted where it should be. I think the all black set could use some more gold below the belt. Think about it for 2016, Saints.

10) Chiefs-Ravens: KC in white/white, BAL in purple/gold. Yes, gold. Well, this one that threw everybody off kilter. No one expected the Ravens to rock, for the first time ever, gold pants. But they did. Lost in the shuffle was the KC in the white over white combo with red socks. As for purple over gold? The gold pants were fascinating, the pant strip was good, except, the Ravens went with a purple/black/purple stripe pattern, which was unnecessary. It junked the set up a bit. Chiefs in red pants would have pumped this matchup a lot, Alas...

9) Texans-Colts: HOU in white/navy, IND in blue/white. I think I'm being fairly consistent here when I say the key element in this matchup is the red jersey numbers of the Texans. With so much blue, navy and white here, the red numbers pop out positively. But still, this matchup is a bit lacking.

8) Panthers-Giants: CAR in white/white, NYG in blue/gray. A fair to middlin matchup, with blues, blacks, reds and silver/grays involved. Panthers all white set seems to stand out in a good way against the Giants blue over gray mode.

7) Packers-Raiders: GB in white/yellow, OAK in silver/black. This is good, not great, not bad, but good. The Raiders in the black over silver set is at once dullish, yet intimidating. The Packers in white over yellow is blah, yet bright with yellow trimmed in green. It makes for something attractive, yet not eye popping.

6) Broncos-Steelers:  DEN in white/white, PIT in black/yellow. The Broncos rather mundane all white navy trim heavy set is helped a lot by the Steelers spot on black over yellow. Can't really explain, but the Broncos white set works here.

5) Jets-Cowboys: NJ in green/white, DAL in white/mint. A nice and clean matchup. Jets greens play well off the Cowboys blues and silvertones. Nothing fancy, just good honest football unis melding as a good get together.

4) Bears-Vikings: CHI in white/navy, MIN in purple/white. Aaah, the NFC North. The sweet confluence of navy, purple, yellow and orange makes this a visual delight. Tradition and contemporary is a good thing.

3) Browns-Seahawks: CLE in white/white, SEA in navy/navy. Browns in their most conservative set offsets quite well the Seahawks navy abundance. The color elements are sharp here, brown, navy, gray, orange and neon green. Works better than originally thought.

2) Buccaneers-Rams: TB in color rush red/red, STL in color rush yellow/yellow. In the final installment of this season's new-fangled Color Rush, we have the Condiment Bowl, ketchup vs. mustard, Heinz vs. French's, etc. But it was a rather cool display. For the Bucs, a nice red jersey that was actually tamer than their normal red jersey. For the Rams, it was a bit of a fauxback hearkening, the days of the yellow jerseys of the 1950's mashed up with the 1973-1999 era jerseys with the sleeve horns. May not be the best, but one I liked a lot.

1) Bengals-49ers: CIN in white/black, SF in red/gold. Yes, this is the way colors can work. Dazzling display of black, red, orange and gold. I just happen to think this works on a lot of levels. Only flaw for me is the Bengals continuing to wear black socks with the black pants. Otherwise, top level matchup!

That is all for now.

Till next time, and on behalf of my cohorts at the GUD (Rob and Bill), we extend our heartiest wishes for the best to you and yours this Holiday season,

Week 14 2015 Weekly Uniform Rankings

by Tim Brulia


16) Titans-Jets: TEN in white.white, NYJ in green/white. Nope, nope, nope. Stop right there. of the eight total color components of this battle, five are white. Titans' helmet, jersey and pants, Jets' helmet and pants. At least one team could have and definitely should have rocked a color element here, namely the pants. I am not amused.

15) Colts-Jaguars: IND in white/white, JAX in black/white. Another team with a really good alternate just wasted. Yes, the Jags have a teal jersey in their closet and this would have been the perfect occasion to bust them out. Instead, the black jersey continues to deaden the nerves. The white pants help, but against the Colts' all whites? Actually, yes. I approve of that. Not enough to lift this one out of the heap.

14) Falcons-Panthers: ATL in white/white, CAR in black/silver. Hmm,,,I just think we needed black pants on one of these teams.  While somewhat dull, the red and light blue trims on the two teams give this matchup just a little verve.

13) Seahawks-Ravens: SEA in white/navy, BAL in purple/black. I love the darkness, but this is a little overkill. Navy pants, black pants, purple jerseys. The Seahawks would have been smart to wear the gray pants here, to avoid the dark dankness.

12) Lions-Rams: DET in white/silver, STL in navy/white. This is a middle of the packer for sure. I normally think the navy over white of the Rams is sharp, but not here. If they still had the gold bottoms, it would have been perfect here. The Lions look stands on its own and bolsters this coupling.

11) Raiders-Broncos: OAK in white/silver, DEN in alternate navy/navy. The Broncs in all navy is just an alternate look these days, and that's a good thing. But while the regular orange tops would have been much better against the Raiders ho-hummish white over silver look, the all-navys hold up surprisingly well. Maybe it's that thick slab of orange on the sides.

10) Steelers-Bengals: PIT in white/yellow, CIN in black/white. AFC North battle where black rules. but the yellow and orange saves the day. Good usage of the colors by both teams. But I'd've cheered more if the Bengals would have rocked a pair of orange socks.

9) Bills-Eagles: BUF in white/blue, PHI in green/white. A little more white than I prefer, but this is a good one. Bills do well to go with the sweet blue trousers, while the Eagles in green juxtapose sweetly against the Bills set.

8) Chargers-Chiefs: SD in white/navy, KC in red/white. Traditional opponents. Chargers navy pants and trim on white jerseys looks pleasing against the Chiefs in the reliable red over white. Nothing fancy, nothing dull, but a fine looking uni matchup.

7) Redskins-Bears: WSH in white/yellow, CHI in navy/white. These go back a long way. But in modern times with modern aesthetics, They look well paired together. A good set of colors, burgundy, navy blue, yellow and orange, make for a nice visual.

6) Saints-Buccaneers: NO in white/black, TB in red/pewter. OK, I should be disgusted by this meeting, instead, I am enchanted. The dull gold of the Saints and the black pants seem to work fabulously against the Bucs red tops and pewter bottoms.

5) Patriots-Texans: NE in white/navy, HOU in alternate red/white. Kept from the top by the Texans' white pants. Still, this meeting delivers. The Texans red is a great antidote to the Pats standard away white over navy, plus I always give style points to games that feature two teams in tri-colors, which this one does (silver/white/navy vs. navy/red/white).

4) Cowboys-Packers: DAL in white/mint, GB in green/yellow. The Cowboys white over mint can get so overbearing, but when it pairs up with that always groovy Packer green over yellow combo, it just looks like the Golden Age of Football. The colors, execution just brims with what a football game should look like, mismatched blues and all.

3) Vikings-Cardinals: MIN in white/purple, ARI in red/white. No Color Rush for this TNF game. It would ave interesting to see what these two would ave been wearing. All purple vs. all red? anyway, the Cardinals are apparently shelving the red pants for 2015. And I suppose, that's a good thing here. The Vikes' purple pants are enough, and both look keen in this encounter.

2) Giants-Dolphins: NYG in white/gray, MIA in throwback aqua/white. What on earth does it take for the Dolphins to get rid of the gross all whites? I guess a prime-time game. This one scores. Dolphins, celebrating their 50th season, wear 1966 era digs. With aqua in full bloom, plus an abundance of sorely missed orange trim. And the Giants with bright blue lids, red trimmed white jerseys, gray pants and red socks make this a delightful color spectacle.

1) 49ers-Browns: SF in white/gold, CLE in alternate orange/brown. Thankfully, the Browns wear what may be the best combo of their bunch. The orange over brown set is a visual treat and the best look so far, and the orange socks accessorize perfectly. Niners comply with the tested but true white over gold, which compliments rather that detract from the matchup.

Comin' back atcha next week!