Seven Teams Change Uniforms in 2020—These Are Our Grades

UNIFORMS
By John Turney

Chargers.com

This year there were seven teams that changed uniforms, but one of them—the Colts were minor leaving six with what would normally be called "new uniforms"

Since Nike took over as the only uniform provider to the NFL in 2012 there had only been ten uniform changes in total (Jacksonville had two of them). Of the seven this year two are also included in the previous ten.

In these seven or six if you will, Cleveland, Tampa Bay, and the Los Angeles Chargers are reverts to former uniforms so the Nike influence is minimal on those. The Patriots are simply a change from their familiar uniforms to what had been their color rush uniforms and then they added a white road jersey. Only the Rams and Falcons allowed the Nikefication of their uniforms, and it showed.

So, we will give overall grades for each, with individual grades on each iteration shown in each team's release photos.

Here is the LINK to the polls cited—NFL Jersey Tier Rankings, 4,710 responses

Overall grade = B

 The pewter over pewter is kind of "meh". Others very good.

Buccaneers Owner/Co-Chairman Ed Glazer stated: "This new but familiar look is a direct result of the valuable feedback we received from our fans. We are excited to return to our classic Super Bowl era uniforms while also introducing a sleek Color Rush uniform that showcases our signature pewter in a new and dramatic way. The refreshed classic design of our home and away combinations bridges our past with our exciting new future, and we are confident it will resonate with our fans."

Overall grade = D

If the Falcons wear the block over white and white over white and black over black and the throwbacks and never wear the gradient or the white over red or white over black the grade would go up to a B-. 

Said the Falcons, "Like the city of Atlanta, black evokes strength, power, grit … and a little bit of swagger. Black jerseys have been a part of Falcons history since they first took the field in 1966, during the original Dirty Bird era in the late 1990s, from 2003-08 and more recently as alternates or throwbacks. The color red reflects a shared sense of community in Atlanta as most of the major sports teams and many iconic homegrown brands share the color."

Further, "Atlanta is known as much for diversity and culture as it is for innovation and creativity. From music and design to business and technology, the city of Atlanta influences everything. The Falcons have a proud tradition of bringing people together from all walks of life, so the new ATL mark is placed proudly and prominently across the chest of the new uniforms as a reflection of a city constantly on the rise."

Matt Ryan said, "There's just a feeling to it. I can't explain it when you look in your locker and that color and head to toe in black is going to be good, too. I don't know what it is, but I know there's a feeling that comes with it for the guys, too, when we see that in our lockers."

Grady Jarrett added, "I think these new uniforms will give us, give the city a new energy and I think people are going to really be excited about it. We know this is a tough time for everyone right now, but we hope this can bring some excitement and light to our city and our fans. Around the whole world, everybody knows what ATL stands for, so we're proud to represent that, today and every day."

" Just letting them know exactly what we're playing for, the city we're playing for. There are a lot of people in this city that ride for the Falcons, and we want to let them know that we're riding for them, also. I like that." Deion Jones added.

The Falcons helmet has evolved from a traditional glossy look to a more modern all-black satin finish

 Overall grade = A-

Fans (see below, don't agree, but a lot of votes in the middle box (34%).

After the debacle a five years ago the Browns Executive Vice President and Owner JW Johnson said, "We wanted to get back to the roots of who the Browns are. We've heard it from our fans and from our players. We needed to get back to our roots."

"As you look at iconic franchises like the Browns, the Bears, the Packers, the Cowboys — they're true to who they are. They're not doing a lot of changes and trying to make a lot of flashy moves with their uniforms. I think when we went through the process, it just felt right that we got back to who we are and who we'll always be."

He is right. What they did before stank. This is the right directon.

 Overall grade = A

All the Colts did was add serifs to their numerals, but the change is an A. we've wanted that for years.

The Colts also made some changes in their wordmarks and added a secondary logo, all of which was well and good. But the main thing was the excellent change in the numerals. Well done, Colts.

Overall grade = B

Fans have a different view than we do, but they also have a 39% chunk of votes in the middle box. The Patriots hinted that throwbacks might be in the offing when the one-helmet rule is lifted in the next year or two. We'll see, These are fine. Not bad. Not stellar.

Overall grade = A

Chargers killed it. Talk about a "modern take on a classic uniform". Many have tried, the Chargers did it.

Said the Chargers, "We evolved it, simplified it, took what YOU loved about it, and made it even better.  Drawing inspiration from California in the 1960s, we set up shop with Nike and the NFL to modify a classic. Staying true to Powder Blue and Sunshine Gold we set out to do just that with a bold, vibrant, and electric update that pays tribute to our AFL roots."

Overall grade = D

The colors are good. The blue over yellow is good. The blue over blue is decent. The light gray over light gray will look washed out and with no contrasting stripes on shoulders or pants or socks all anyone will see is a wave-horn and the numerals. It will just be gray.  If a team is going to do all gray there has to be contrast—blue socks, blue striping somewhere. The whole kit gets a one-lettr downgrade because of the lid. The broken wave-horn is not a ram horn. It's supposed to be a wave, a Fibonacci spiral, anything but a traditional Ram horn.

Bobby Douglass and His 1972 Run for a Record

By Joe Zagorski

In 1972, many NFL teams were experiencing more success than ever before by running the football.  The cause was primarily because the hash marks were moved closer to the middle of the field, which gave running backs more room with which to find holes and escape defenders. It also gave quarterbacks more room to head downfield with the pigskin tucked under their arm. 

No quarterback throughout the entire decade of the 1970s experienced more success in running with the football than Bobby Douglass did in 1972. The Chicago Bears signal-caller broke out of his passing pocket a total of 141 times for a record 968 yards rushing, a 6.9 yards per rush average that was tops in the league.  The Bears finished in last place in the NFC Central Division in 1972 with a 4-9-1 record, but the blame could not be attributed to Douglass, at least as far as his running abilities were concerned.  Douglass led his team in rushing that year.

Douglass brought a physical bearing to the quarterback position. He stood 6-foot-3 and weighed 225 pounds.  It was not uncommon to see him break many tackles en route to gaining ground yardage, and one could often observe defensive opponents—many of whom were of the same size as Douglass – bounce off of him as he surged downfield. Some people proclaimed him to be nothing more than a misplaced fullback, but he certainly brought more to the team than just his running capacity.  

He possessed one of the strongest throwing arms in the league. Critics derided his passing attempts as void of accuracy, but few men in the league could throw the deep pass better than Douglass.  Moreover, Douglass also served as the Bears holder on field goal attempts and point-after-touchdown conversion attempts. Several times in 1972, a center snap back to Douglass would go awry, and when that happened, Douglass would provide an ad-lib scramble to aid the team.

Right from the very first game, Douglass was a quarterback on the run. The Bears were trounced by the visiting Atlanta Falcons, 37-21, but Douglass made his presence felt with 68 rushing yards on nine carries (a 7.6-yard average). The Bears actually outrushed the Falcons, but Atlanta’s 31-7 halftime lead proved to be too much for Chicago to overcome. Douglass did even better against a supposedly tougher defense the following week, as he ran for 82 yards on seven carries (an 11.7-yard average per rush) against the Los Angeles Rams. 

Unfortunately for Douglass, one of his two interceptions on this afternoon was returned 24 yards for a touchdown by Rams defensive back Gene Howard, which kept the Bears from doing anything more than posting a 13-13 tie. The third game resulted in another Chicago loss, as they lost to the rival Detroit Lions, 38-24. Douglass ran for 97 yards on 12 carries (an 8.1-yard rushing average per carry) and one touchdown. But he also threw two more interceptions, as the Bears started to fall out of competition in the tough NFC Central Division. Despite this, the Chicago offensive game plan remained the same…and strategically basic.

 “The coaching staff felt we had to establish a running game first,” recalled Douglass. “Don’t forget, you have to have a good running game to set up the passing game.”

Douglass took this edict from his coaches to heart. His passing plays and their results always took a back seat to his running efforts. Chicago head coach Abe Gibron was nevertheless satisfied that his quarterback was doing what his offense needed the most. 

Because his receivers sometimes had difficulty snaring the missiles that Douglass threw, Gibron felt that it was best to give his quarterback a green light to run with the ball as a quick option, rather than taking a sack. As a result, Douglass often never searched in the pocket for more than one receiver before tucking the ball and running with it. His secondary target was often ignored.

One thing that Gibron, Douglass, and the rest of the Bears could not ignore, however, was the losing.  Chicago’s fourth game was a 20-17 loss to the Green Bay Packers. The Bears outscored the Packers in the second half, but Green Bay’s defense held Douglass to his worst outing so far in 1972, at least in regard to his rushing output. Douglass was held to only 45 yards on 12 carries (a 3.8-yard average per rush). Despite this, Douglass was drawing praise from some opposing coaches.

 “I’ve always said Douglass was a good quarterback, even before I became a pro coach,” admitted Green Bay head coach Dan Devine. There are football experts who say quarterbacks can’t run in the NFL. They should come out here and try coaching in a game like this.”

Chicago finally notched its first win of the 1972 season the following week, and they did it in grand fashion. The Bears shutout the Cleveland Browns, 17-0, a team that would eventually win the AFC Wild Card berth in a few months’ time. It was Douglass’ second-best rushing game of the year, and it was highlighted by his 41-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Earl Thomas, and his 57-yard scoring sprint down the near sideline in the fourth quarter to ice the game. 

On that run, Douglass bootlegged around left end and showed off his speed. He was not confronted by any potential tacklers until he reached the Cleveland 15-yard line. At that point, he weaved inside of Clarence Scott’s feeble tackling attempt, and then stiff-armed Thom Darden at the 5-yard line to reach the end zone.  All tolled, Douglass accounted for 117 rushing yards against the Browns on 11 attempts (a 10.6-yard rushing average).

“Douglass is a strong runner who makes problems for the defense,” lamented Cleveland head coach Nick Skorich after the game. “He gets the flow going one way, and then goes another. They should have made him a halfback. He’s very quick. He looked damned fast on that bootleg.”

Douglass’ speed was slowed down quite a bit during the next handful of games, but he was able to engineer a big win over the rival Vikings on Monday Night Football in week six. Douglass ran for 66 tough yards on 11 carries (a 6-yard average) in a game that primarily featured Chicago’s running game. 

Douglass only threw the ball five times against the tough Minnesota defense, but thanks to running back Jim Harrison’s 103 ground yards, the Bears managed to pull out a 13-10 upset victory.  Chicago continued their momentum the following week with a 27-10 win at St. Louis. But it was a misleading game, for the Cardinals committed four turnovers, and Douglass could generate only 29 rushing yards.  But he was able to score a touchdown (his fourth of the 1972 season), and he also threw a 73-yard scoring bomb to wideout George Farmer. The Bears now owned a 3-3-1 record as they began the second half of their schedule.

 “I run more than anyone else,” admitted Douglass in a 1973 interview. “But I do it because we thought it would help our running game. It does have its advantages. I’ll run around a while and either find someone downfield or gain some yards myself.”

Unfortunately for Chicago and despite Douglass’ running efforts, they ran off a string of five straight losses at this point, which effectively ended any hope that they might have had for contention in the NFC Central. Losses to the Detroit Lions (14-0 on November 5), Green Bay Packers (23-17 on November 12), San Francisco 49ers (34-21 on November 19), Cincinnati Bengals (13-3 on November 26), and the Minnesota Vikings (23-10 on December 3) were certainly tough for the Bears to swallow. But Bobby Douglass nevertheless managed to account for a total of 262 rushing yards during those five defeats. 

The second-to-last week of the season resulted in Chicago’s final win of the year, a 21-12 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. It proved to be one of the most productive outings of the year for the Bears. Douglass ran for 75 yards and two touchdowns, both of which were meandering runs through the heart of the Eagles defense. 

Chicago’s offense compiled 214 total rushing yards in the game.  The Bears completed their 1972 season at Oakland. Despite their 28-21 loss, Douglass ran for a season-high 127 yards on 14 carries (a 9.1-yard rushing average). 

As a result, Douglass set a new NFL season rushing record for quarterbacks (in a 14-game regular season) of 968 yards rushing that stood for 34 years until it was broken in 2006 by Michael Vick of the Atlanta Falcons, who achieved his new record of 1,039 yards rushing in a 16-game season. Abe Gibron simply summed up his quarterback’s spectacular 1972 season the best by proudly stating that “He’s my quarterback.”

 Sources:

Articles:

Associated Press.  “Skorich To Change Lineup.”  Salem News, October 16, 1972, 12.

Books:

Boss, David.  Prolog: The Official National Football League Annual for 1973.  Los Angeles:

 Dell, 1973.

Zagorski, Joe.  The Year the Packers Came Back: Green Bay’s 1972 Resurgence.  Jefferson,

 North Carolina: McFarland and Company, Inc., 2019.

-----.  The NFL in the 1970s: Pro Football’s Most Important Decade.  Jefferson, North Carolina:

 McFarland and Company, Inc., 2016.

Editor’s Note:

Longtime PFRA member Joe Zagorski’s first book, The NFL in the 1970s: Pro Football’s Most Important Decade was released in 2016 by McFarland and Company, Inc. His second book, The Year the Packers Came Back: Green Bay’s 1972 Resurgence was recently released in December of 2019, and also was published by McFarland and Company, Inc.  His third book, America’s Trailblazing Middle Linebacker: The Story of NFL Hall of Famer Willie Lanier, was released in February of 2020.  That book is published by Rowman & Littlefield.

How One Mann Became a Mighty Oak for the Lions (Sorry for Mixed Metaphor)

LOOKING BACK
By John Turney

Bob Mann with the Lions

In 1975 in Peterson's Football Annual, Chuck Benedict introduced us all to the concept of "trade strings", the idea of one player being parlayed into many players via trade. He gave several examples and one was the Bobby Layne trade to the Lions in 1950. However, Mr. Benedict left his work unfinished and had a few small errors and we've always wanted to expand his excellent essay to present day anyway.

We hear a lot about NFL draft busts, first- or maybe second-round draftee that yield nothing for the team that drafted them and also we read about low round players or free agents that far exceed their draft status and we celebrate them.

But sometimes there is something in between that goes unnoticed because the player changes teams and becomes forgotten in time.

One such player is Bob Mann.

Mann was signed by the Detroit Lions as a free agent in 1948 (and was the first African-American player the Lions ever signed) and had a fine rookie season, catching  33 passes for 560 yards and three touchdowns. Then, in 1949, he had a huge second-year leap to lead the NFL in reception yards with 1014 on 66 catches. The NFL didn't have a Pro Bowl that year but had there been one he surely would have gone to it but he did gain honorable mention All-Pro honors for his efforts.

So, he became a perennial All-Pro for the Lions after than, right?

Nope.

But he had built up his value enough to be valued equal to that of Bobby Layne. What was Layne's value? Just a year earlier the Bulldogs sent two #1 picks to the Bears for him.

Bobby Layne with Bulldogs

In 1950 move from the Bulldogs to the Lions it was more complex. Layne was traded to the Lions for Camp Wilson, who refused to report to the Bulldogs and retired rather than pla for them. So, the NFL ordered Mann to the Lions. Mann wanted a raised from the Lions based on his stellar 1949 season. So a month or so after the original deal, Mann was a Bulldog and Layne was a Lion.

Bob Mann

And the rest is history, right?

Nope.

First, there were some oddities with Mann who refused to report to the Bulldogs and was released then was claimed by the Lions on waivers but also lost to the Packers on waivers and ended the season with them, playing the last three games. He played his last four seasons with Green Bay.

Layne with Lions

Layne, of course, played 8-1/6 seasons for the Lions, winning two titles in what became a Hall of Fame career. Then, after two weeks into the 1958 season (the 1/6 season we just mentioned) he was traded to the Steelers for Earl Morrall and a second-round pick and a fourth-round pick.

Layne with Steelers

Other than 1963 (174/328 53.0 % 2621 yards  24 TD  14 INT and an 86.2 rating) Morrall was a backup for the Lions, albeit a good one (11-5 in starts other than 1963). So, while no Bobby Layne the Lions did get some value for Morrall.

Earl Morrall

The second-round pick they received was guard Mike Rabold who was a backup for one year and then traded to the Cardinals for strong-side linebacker Carl Brettschneider who gave the Lions three solid seasons and part of a fourth. Brettschneider was no star but he fit perfectly into the Lions defense opposite the blitzing Wayne Walker, the Lions weakside 'backer, and next to Hall of Fame middle linebacker Joe Schmidt.

He also had to cover the flat and know, to the extent any person could, what Night train lane was doing on that said, so he could cover any gaps left by the freelancing all-time great left corner. Brettschneider was a solid, unsung type, an "All-Joe" if you will.

The last pick in the 1958 trade was Roger Brown, the dominant right defensive tackle who gave the Lions seven years of stellar All-pro service. He could have been the NFL's Defensive Player of the year in 1962 had such an award been available—The NEA didn't start giving one until 1966. He was, at his peak, better than Hall of Famer Alex Karras, but Karras likely had a longer, more steady career and got the nod to Canton.

Rosey Grier

In August of 1967 the Rams Rosey Grier blew out an Achilles tendon and was done for the year and as it turned out, done for his career. Rams head coach George Allen was desperate to replace him, not wanting to compromise the talent level of his Fearsome Foursome defensive line so he was able to pry Brown away from the Lions for the ole' Lawrence Welk deal, "Ah one, ah two, ah three". Allen had his right tackle, the Lions had three more picks from the draft string that began with Mann.

Brown with the Rams in 1967

However, we need to go back to prior to the Brown-to-Rams trade for a moment.

In 1965 Earl Morrall was traded to the Lions in a three-way deal that netted the Lions Mike Lucci and a draft pick. Lucci was the starting middle linebacker for eight years and received post-season honors in 1969, 70, and 1971.

Mike Lucci (52) with the Browns

The Lions had a hole at 'Mike' with Joe Schmidt retiring and while Lucci was no Schmidt he was a quality player, picking off 21 passes in his right Lions seasons. Lucci had been a part-time starter at middle-and outside linebacker in Cleveland, just looking for a change to play full-time and the trade to the Lions was it.

Lucci

The Lions also got a pick that tuned out to be Doug Van Horn. The Lions got one year out of him as a backup then sold him to the Giants. He turned out to be a solid player, and the Lions may have missed on him. But that's a story for another day.

Another player involved was Darrell Dess a 30-year old guard who never played for the Lions. Instead, he was sent to Washington for guard Ted Karras and quarterback George Izo. The Lions got a year out of each including a year od starts out of Karras (Alex's brother) and a 2-1 record as a backup out of Izo.

George Izo with the Lions in 1965

Both were cut in the Fall of 1966 and Karras was picked up by the Rams and Izo by the Steelers and both closed out their careers that year.

So, back to the three picks acquired for Roger Brown.

The first-rounder was Earl McCullouch in 1968. He has to be classified as a first-round bust. His best season was hist first, he was All-Rookie but he kept getting hurt and his production kept going down. He played six seasons and was finally cut.

The second-rounder was in 1969—tackle Jim Yarbrough out of Florida.  He was decent, but out of nine seasons got only six starting seasons from him. He was "just a guy". Perhaps this is where Van Horn could have fit in. With him at a tackle spot maybe this 1969 second-round pick could have been a more productive player. Who knows?

Last and certainly not least was Charlie Sanders, the Hall of Fame tight end, was the third-rounder, taken in 1968. He was a three-time All-Pro and a seven-time Pro Bowler and played ten years for the Lions. Not a bad way to end the draft/trade string.

So, what is the tally? What did the Lions get in terms of service from signing Bob Mann and then trading him to the Bulldogs then getting "salvage value" from that player and then from those picks and players and so on and so on?

Her it is—
Bob Mann—2 Years
Bobby Layne —8 years, 3 titles, 2 All-Pros, 4 Pro Bowls, Hall of Fame
Earl Morrall—7 years
Mike Rabold—1 year
Carl Brettschneider—4 years
Roger Brown—7 years, 2 All-Pro, 5 Pro Bowls
Darrell Dess—0 years
George Izo—1 year
Ted Karras—1 Year
Doug Van Horn—1 year, plus cash
Mike Lucci—8 Years, 3 post-season honors
Earl McCullouch—6 years
Jim Yarbrough—9 years
Charlie Sanders—10 Years, 3 All-Pro, 7 Pro Bowls, Hall of Fame
Total—65 years, 2 HOFers

All from one free agent signing.

Talk about good value.

If You Want to Keep Your Job You Do What Your Boss Says

OPINION
By John Turney

In terms of the move from St. Louis to Los Angeles Rams COO Kevin Demoff had to say and do a lot of things for owner Stan Kroenke. That is what his job is. That entails spinning, dissembling, engaging in prevarications, and yes lying.

And every one of us would do that if we were paid that kind of money to be the spokesperson of a high-profile organization that was leaving a city under somewhat shady circumstances (that have landed that organization in court). I would, you would.

So, I think it was unfair for the Fox 2 employee in St/ Louis to put that graphic on the screen calling Demoff a professional liar.

If an executive at GM were closing a plant in the rust belt and moving to Mexico or elsewhere and the plans were not yet final, that their right, though many might not think it is savory, they are under no legal or even moral obligation to announce it before all the "ts" are crossed and all the "is" are dotted.

Same is the case with Demoff and the move to Los Angeles.

If we were in Stan Kroenke's shoes, with an option to but the Rams at less than $750 million (acutally less than that as his 1995 buy-in portion had appreciated over 15 years)  and had a chance to move them to another city where the value will instantly double and eventually quintuple (or more) we'd do it in a heartbeat and we'd pay someone like Demoff to be our flack.

So, yeah, I'd work for Kroenke and I'd do what Demoff did in the St. Louis move.

What I would never do is debauch the Rams horn which Demoff did.

He was not paid to do that. He did it on his own. It was not part of his job, it was his choice. It was not part of some grand plan that was necessary to preserve the privacy and secrecy needed to secure a move from one city to another or even to sign a free agent or even to make a trade for a star player.

All those things are part of the business of the NFL.

Taking something Demoff himself said was "sacrosanct" (synonyms—sacred, hallowed, respected, inviolate) and he allowed it to be violated.

Oh sure, he says it's the same horn, just "modernized". But this time the lies are not justifiable. They are to cover his ass. To justify a terrible decision. To try and placate disillusion fans who trusted his words when he said the horn was "sacrosanct".

Clearly, Demoff needs the Inigo Montoya treatment, "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means".

Arash Markazi, a columnist for the Los Angeles Times called Demoff out on this foolishness.

Markazi is right.

It's not even the color of the helmet or the color of the horns. Those have been changed over time. It's the iconic shape and curl of the horn.

The slap in the face, the sacrilege is that the horn now on the Ram helmet for the next five years in not even a Ram horn. It's a wave. Just read the Rams own literature—

When the logo was revealed fans were hot. They said it looked like the Chargers, a "bolt". No, said the Rams when you get good look fans will see it looks "more like an ocean wave, which is what the designers planned.

Hard to understand why some my get the impression that the new logo was Charger-like—

The reveal of the logo buttressed that saying the curve of the so-called horn was inspired bu the Fibonacci sequence, a spiral of a football, a crashing wave . . ."

Seriously?

Throw in that the bone color is supposed to be a combination of the color of the sand on the Los Angeles beaches and the color of a Ram horn (which is not bone, by the way, it's more like fingernail material).

Add to which there is a sunburst on the light grey uniforms the Rams call "bone" and the blue numerals have what look to be waves in them and also the logo on a yellow field that has the wave-horn on it. You will see there is nothing, other than the nametag that suggests Rams at all.

Eric Dickerson was right. It's beachwear.

At least the blue uniform has the wave-horn on the shoulder.

Back to the horn.

Lots could have been done if they were not so committed to the Ram brass' notion of what "modern" was. Whoever gave them the idea they know what it is and how it could be achieved in good taste is a mystery. They certainly cannot get it from Nike, who has ruined more uniforms in the NFL than John Kruk's chewing tobacco.

I supposed we just have to take their word for it and withstand Demoff's blame game "If you don't like it you're too old" or "you will get used to it in time" or "you need to see it under the right circumstances, in the new stadium with the lighting with the oculus, under a full moon, on the third Sunday in October".

All that is an attempt as gaslighting Rams fans. Trying to say there issomething wrong with them if they object to the wave-horn and not something wrong with the wave-horn itself. In an interview on KLAC last week Demoff told 'Roggin and Rodney' that from afar the wave-horn looks like the old horn. Well, swell. What about for those watching on high definition television or with great seats in the new stadium? The more he talks the worse the explanation gets.

Eric Dickerson said a uniform should look great the moment you see it. He also said the horn should not look like a banana which this wave-horn does.

The Rams could have used the same colors and curled the horn and it would still be "modern"—

They could have borrowed Angelo States horn. They borrowed the royal chrome and yellow colors and Angelo State has been borrowing the Rams original and classic horn for years. 

The Rams also cribbed off of Angelo State's logo and light grey uniforms so why not go all in and use the horn--it was the LA Ram horn anyway?

If the Rams and Nike insisted on the stupid "broken wave-horn", it could have added and still had the curl shape. Apparently, it was to give a "3D" look, which is doesn't. But compromises can be had. But the horn was supposed to be sacrosanct but it really wasn't.

Here you can see the broken wave-horn gives no 3-D affect at all. It's a fail.

The bottom line is this: The Rams are stuck with the broken wave-horn for a minimum of five years. And sadly, it is not a Ram horn, Ram horns look like this—

 Ram horn curl. The new Los Angeles Rams wave-horn does not curl like a Ram horn. It was not "sacrosanct". It was desecrated on the alter of "newness" and "modernness"  by people who profess those as values but lack the ability to articulate what those values mean. They just say them and expect fans to accept them.

Who do Demoff and Nike and whoever else had a hand in this think they are talking to? The sycophantic LA and Rams media? That same media with the exception of Arash Markazi regurgitates what Demoff says without question or comment? The same LA media that seems to be afraid to lose access to Rams brass or, even worse, doesn't have the sense to know that the team they cover just had its brand, its iconic symbol crapped on by Kevin Demoff?

Why in the world would you change from a universally accepted top five in the NFL helmet (many non-Rams fans think it's the best) and likely one of the top five ever (again, perhaps the best-ever) based on our view and conversations going back decades to a horn that ruins a decent royal metallic-colored helmet? Now, making it likely a bottom five helmet, if not the worst.

Demoff is talking to Rams fans, many of whom became Rams fans because of that horn. What Demoff never got is THAT is what made the horn sacrosanct. It was the genesis for the fanhood of countless members of Rams Nation. And Demoff just blew all that off in the name of, what did Robert Woods call it? “Super modern, super futuristic”?

Good plan. (Sarcasm noted).  How can the COO of a team not know his fan base? How can he divide the fan base by reaching out to one fan base at the expense of another? And that is exactly what is happening. It's very apparent on Twitter and it's nasty. That is Demoff's tin ear at work.

There was a way, in terms of the helmet to do both as we showed in the examples of the helmets with the new colors and even the break in the horn that has the curl. I was never that hard.

No, Demoff didn't do anything wrong when his lies were justified in the St. Louis to Los Angeles move. It's part of the game in billion-dollar business. Information leaking out can cost millions and millions of dollars in added expenses in land, leases and other expenses people like you and I have never even pondered—not to mention upcoming legal expenses.

However, the lie of calling telling Nike that the Ram horn was "sacrosanct" then revealing a wave-horn that was meant to reflect a wave is not a justifiable white lie. It's just a lie.