What’s every NFL team’s best and worst uniform in franchise history?

Every NFL uniform tells a story. Some represent history, with designs nearly untouched since inception. Others have (thankfully) been retired as quickly as they were introduced.

This month, I asked The Athletic’s staffers for the best and worst uniforms worn by each NFL franchise. Writers got quite specific in their responses. Let us know your favorite team’s best or worst uniforms in the comments, and read on to see what our staffers decided.

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Arizona Cardinals

Best: ‘Rivalries’ uniform (2025)

At a recent offseason practice, I noticed a bird resting on a tree branch. I pointed this out to another reporter: Is that a cardinal watching the Cardinals practice? The bird appeared red, but as we looked closer, we realized it was more orange-ish in color. For this purpose, that’s appropriate.

The Cardinal mascot transferred to Arizona when the franchise relocated from St. Louis in 1988. Its roots are actually in the cardinal color, not the bird. Even so, it always has seemed a bit miscast in the desert. That’s why I like the “Rivalries” uniform that was introduced in 2025. It has a desert vibe others have lacked.

Worst: All-red (2023)

In 2023, the Cardinals sported an all-red look that one fan described on social media as looking a lot like pajamas. He wasn’t wrong. I’m a fan of simple uniforms. Less is more. But this was too plain. — Doug Haller

Atlanta Falcons

Best: Falcons red (1978-1989)

Do they just not make this color red anymore? It’s the only reason I can think to ever change from these beauties with the classic bird emblem and silver pants. No notes.

Worst: Black home uniforms (1990-1996)

I’ll never forgive former head coach Jerry Glanville for these things. They weren’t terrible on their own, but they ushered in an era of black-dominated jersey combinations that never hit the mark. The Falcons were 46-66 in these, which outlasted the “Man in Black” himself by three seasons. — Josh Kendall

Baltimore Ravens

Best: Blackout (2004-present)

Baltimore’s black-on-black combination is typically reserved for primetime games or other spotlight matchups. It’s the team’s fiercest look.

Worst: Mustard pants (2015)

In Week 15 of the 2015 season, the Ravens broke out mustard-colored pants to pair with their purple home jersey, and they haven’t worn them since. They were that poorly received, by players and fans alike. — Jeff Zrebiec

Buffalo Bills

Best: Red, white and blue (1962-present, mostly)

Not the original fit, but few recall when Bills founder and former Lions minority-owner Ralph Wilson stole his hometown team’s silver and Honolulu blue. When the Bills truly emerged on their own four hooves was when they switched to red, white and blue in 1962. These classics remain the Bills’ cleanest, most striking uniform — topped by the iconic white helmet with a standing, red buffalo.

Worst: Navy blue (2002-2010)

The Bills rebranded for a new era after Super Bowl legends Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas and Bruce Smith moved on, ushering in one of the darkest times in club history. In 2002, two years into a 17-season playoff drought, Buffalo switched to a navy-blue base. The uniforms matched the on-field product. — Tim Graham

Carolina Panthers

Best: Color Rush blue (2015-present)

The Color Rush jerseys the Panthers debuted in 2015 were just like that Cam Newton-led Super Bowl team: bright, brash and flamboyant. Wearing them for the first time at Dallas on Thanksgiving Day, it was like Cam, Luke Kuechly and their teammates were saying to the Cowboys and everyone watching at home, “You don’t like them? Do something about it.” The Panthers were an unstoppable force most of that season, including in that 33-14 win at Dallas. Tony Romo is probably still seeing those blue jerseys in his sleep. (The Color Rush phenomenon began last decade as a Thursday night spectacle of solid-color alternate uniforms; some of those uniforms outlasted the promotion.

Worst: White and silver mix (1998-present)

The white jerseys are a nice, clean look, and they’ve used them in a bunch of uniform combinations. Bryce Young & Co. unveiled a white-jersey-with-black-helmets look last season that was pretty fire. But when the Panthers have worn the white tops with silver bottoms sandwiched between the white jerseys and white socks, it’s made the pants look dingy … like those slacks your dad should have taken to Goodwill years ago. The Panthers need to chuck that uni combo into the donation box. — Joe Person

Chicago Bears

Best: Home navy (1984-present)

For a franchise steeped in tradition, it’s hard to go against the classic home uniforms that have stood the test of time. Navy jerseys with three orange sleeve stripes. White pants with an orange-and-navy stripe down the side. Classic Bears socks. If you still need convincing, call up the 1985 NFC Championship Game at Soldier Field and see one of the most legendary teams in NFL history recording arguably the most iconic home win the franchise has ever had.

Worst: Retro navy (1994)

This Red Grange-era ensemble wouldn’t even be on the radar had the Bears not brought them back for three games in 1994. But alas, they did, donning a difficult-to-look-at jersey with a navy blue base and thick vertical orange stripes all across the front with another V-shaped orange stripe near the collar and a small white number near the right shoulder pad. Oh, and tan uniform pants, too. Hard pass. — Dan Wiederer

Cincinnati Bengals

Best: White Bengal (2022-present)

This goes beyond the jersey. The white helmet, jersey, pants, socks combo in a primetime game is far and away the coolest aesthetic in team history.

Worst: ‘Open in Orange’ (2024-present)

The Bengals created “Open in Orange” the past two years, and it ended in an inexplicable loss to the Jerod Mayo-coached Patriots in 2024 and Joe Burrow’s toe injury in 2025. Zero stars, do not recommend. — Paul Dehner Jr.

Cleveland Browns

Best: Classic (1946-present)

There’s no such thing as a “bad” Browns jersey, as long as it follows the team’s signature and simple look. Simple works.

Worst: ‘Cleveland’ block jersey (2015-2019)

The “Cleveland” jerseys in what was billed as bold block lettering from 2015-2019 were the worst. Just a total fail, and the team knew it. — Zac Jackson

Dallas Cowboys

Best: White home jersey (1965-present)

The Cowboys’ best jersey is their traditional one. It’s the jersey everyone thinks of when you picture the franchise’s greats, from Roger Staubach to Emmitt Smith to Jason Witten.

Worst: Seafoam green pants (2013-2019)

The Cowboys really don’t have a bad jersey. They stay pretty traditional. The biggest criticism of their uniform over the years was about the pants they used to wear with their white jerseys. They switched to them from the traditional silver so they would stand out more on television. After the 2019 season, they switched back to the silver. — Jon Machota

Denver Broncos

Best: The iconic ‘D’ (1967 to 1996)

The uniforms worn by the Orange Crush defense that put the Broncos on the map in 1977 — and by John Elway as the gunslinging quarterback who captured the hearts and imaginations of the Mile High City — remain a part of the fabric of the Denver’s sporting history.

It’s a shame that Denver’s two Super Bowl titles in the late 1990s came just after these beauties were discontinued in favor of the entirely meh navy blue unis that Broncos players wore for the next quarter century.

When the Broncos introduced a new batch of uniforms in 2024 that included a retro version of the Orange Crush classics, fans began clamoring for that to return as the team’s primary uniform. Alas, there is no replicating what that uniform meant during that time and space in Denver.

Worst: Original mustard and stripes (1960-1961)

In some corners of the Broncos fan universe, the brown-and-yellow stylings of the team’s original uniform have become retro chic. You’ll see brown hats adorned with the goofy cowboy logo from time to time — a kind of hipster iconography.

Let’s be real, though: These uniforms are hideous. They were secondhand threads chosen by the team’s founding owners as a measure to save money. The outcry from the new organization’s fans was so robust that when they were dropped after one year, there was a public bonfire so that supporters could watch the unsightly laundry burn. — Nick Kosmider

Detroit Lions

Best: Refreshed Honolulu blue (2024-present)

I’ll be honest, my knowledge of Lions uniforms is mostly limited to what I’ve seen during my time on the beat, dating back to 2022. The Lions got a uniform refresh ahead of the 2024 season, and the inspiration for the current Honolulu blue uniforms was the ones worn in the 1990s. Considering some of the memories made by Barry Sanders and those ’90s squads, and how clean the current uniforms look, I’ll go with the inspo.

Worst: All-gray Color Rush (2017-2023)

As for the worst … I wasn’t a fan of the all-gray uniforms. Just kind of bland to me. I do remember some backlash when the Lions announced they were bringing back their black alternates, which leads me to believe most weren’t fans of the original ones unveiled in the mid-2000s. Or maybe that had more to do with being associated with some bad football. — Colton Pouncy

Green Bay Packers

Best: ’50s classic (2021)

These callbacks from a couple seasons ago are the cleanest jerseys I’ve seen the Packers use. I love the vibrant colors.

Worst: Navy throwbacks (2010-2011)

These are aesthetically unpleasant, but hey, that was the last time they won the Super Bowl. — Matt Schneidman

Houston Texans

Best: Classic away (2002-present)

The Texans’ away white-on-blue uniforms are timeless and really clean. The blue home jerseys on white pants aren’t bad at all. But there’s something about the white jerseys with the red numbers atop those deep blue pants that just hits.

Worst: Battle red (2024-2025)

The Texans took the red look to the extreme, donning red jerseys, red pants and red helmets, which was just way too much and not at all easy on the eyes. Red jerseys atop white pants to go with the red helmet wouldn’t be so over-the-top. But all red was just too much. — Mike Jones

Indianapolis Colts

Best: White jersey, blue pants (1995)

The Colts wore this for the first three games of the 1995 season. However, Indy scrapped that combination during that campaign and has not worn blue pants with white jerseys and helmets since. I think Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk looked pretty sweet in that uniform, as did his teammates, and it would be cool if the Colts brought them back.

Worst: ‘Indiana Nights’ alternative (2023-present)

The combination includes a black helmet — the first in franchise history — with a blue horseshoe painted on the side, but that’s about the only part of the uniform that I like. The blue jerseys and pants include a heather pattern that make the Colts look like a traveling middle school team more than an NFL franchise. — James Boyd

Jacksonville Jaguars

Best: Debut home uniforms (1995-2008)

These were perfectly ’90s with teal jerseys, but the look has had staying power. Their best threads over the years, including the recent incarnations, have all been a nod to the originals.

Worst: Blended hues (2013-2017)

Thankfully, this was just a disappointing phase and not the start of a trend. The Jaguars tried to mix it up by blending in a golden hue with the midnight black helmets, and they doubled down by accentuating the gold — and an entire Color Rush getup — in the uniforms. The home look with the teal jerseys (and awful black shoulders), black pants and blended helmets were better suited for a slumber party than a football game. Blake Bortles deserved better. — Jeff Howe

Kansas City Chiefs

Best: Classic home (1963-present)

The Chiefs have almost completely stayed away from alternate uniforms, with owner Clark Hunt saying the team believes it has a distinct brand with its red-and-white look. He’s right. The Chiefs’ home jersey — red tops over white pants — has become instantly recognizable for a team that now markets itself globally.

Worst: Dallas Texans throwbacks (2009)

Can we just say this one was always going to be doomed? For the Chiefs to do a true throwback, they needed to honor their previous history as the Dallas Texans. And to do that, a team in Kansas City, Missouri, had to use the state of Texas as its helmet logo with a gold star centered on the city of Dallas. The Chiefs deserve credit for staying historically accurate, but it’s no surprise that K.C. fans never took to these unis. — Jesse Newell

Las Vegas Raiders

Best: Home uniforms (1963-present)

The Raiders home jersey is one of the most iconic in sports and one that hasn’t changed since Al Davis joined the franchise. It’s a timeless piece of football history that should not and will never be redesigned.

Worst: Color Rush (2017)

The push for Thursday Night Football forced the Raiders to debut a new uniform in 2017. While still sleek, it strays from the team’s classic look, and the all white is too light for the Silver and Black. — Sam Warren

Los Angeles Chargers

Best: Powder blue, yellow pants (2025)

Powder blue will always be the answer to a question like this. Yellow pants, white pants, it doesn’t matter. These jerseys are all-time classics and one of the cleanest looks in league history. You actually can’t go wrong with any Chargers colorway, as the navy blue uniforms are equally strong. Almost any, actually …

Worst: Color Rush (2025)

My mother is fond of saying that “Too much of a good thing is still too much,” and that’s certainly the case here. The iconic Chargers yellow is a perfect accent, but an awful idea as a full uniform. — Jacob Robinson

Los Angeles Rams

Best: Home throwbacks (1973-1999)

Rams fans often join one of two camps: the one that prefers this jersey set and the one that prefers the blue-and-white look of the 1960s and 1970s. Both are clean and classic, but it’s no coincidence that when the Rams go with a “throwback” look, generally it’s this one. There’s just something about this combination of blue and yellow hues that pops, and it looks even better in person.

Worst: Mismatched home (2017)

The Rams were a little stuck after their relocation from St. Louis to Los Angeles in 2016. They planned to do a full rebrand, but not until they moved into their new stadium. So, for a couple of years, they gave off “last clean clothes on laundry day” vibes, as they retained their old St. Louis jerseys but tried to incorporate some old-school L.A. flavor with white horns on the helmet. — Rich Hammond

Miami Dolphins

Best: White away jerseys (1996)

I prefer the Dolphins’ old teal, which was darker than the current aqua shade. But my favorite part about the uniforms from this era is the old logo on the sleeves and helmets. Give Flipper his helmet back!

Worst: Color Rush (2016)

To be clear: I don’t hate when a team tries out a new primary jersey color. The 2005 Color Rush orange was more of a tangerine shade than the 2016 version, and I liked those. But the 2016 was too yellow, and the white helmets didn’t help. They also steered too close to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Creamsicle throwbacks. — Jayna Bardahl

Minnesota Vikings

Best: Classic throwback (1967-1983)

How could this not be the pick for the best? The Vikings won in these jerseys. Like, the Vikings. The originals. When you see them, you think Fran Tarkenton and Alan Page. You think cold, hardened, legendary.

Worst: Throwback alternate ‘Favre jersey’ (2007-2011)

These aren’t necessarily terrible, and the 2009 team certainly made them look good. It’s just the blandness. The colors barely pop. They look fairly generic. That team had too many studs not to fly around with more electricity. It’s tough to pick the worst, though — purple and gold usually works. — Alec Lewis

New England Patriots

Best: Red throwbacks (2022-present)

With the old-school Pat Patriot logo on white helmets. Clean, nostalgic and sharp.

Worst: ​Royal blue home (1993)

Then-new owner James Orthwein switched the Patriots in 1993 to the Flying Elvis logo we’re now familiar with, but he did so by switching the team to this jersey with numbers that were tough to read. — Chad Graff

New Orleans Saints

Best: Home black (1986-1995)

The version they wore in the late 1980s and early 1990s was very simple but classic, letting the black and gold shine through. What puts this over the top for me is the Louisiana patch with the Saints logo inside. I have this exact replica Bobby Hebert jersey in my closet.

Worst: Black helmet (2022-2025)

It reeks of modern nonsense, with the weird dot pattern. Stop messing with my team’s uniforms, please. — Chris Branch

New York Giants

Best: White Color Rush (2016-Present)

The white looks brighter and the blue numbers pop on these throwbacks to their 1980s and 1990s uniforms. The Giants need to go back to these as their full-time road unis.

Worst: Current road uniform (2012-Present)

The Giants’ road uniforms took a major step back when they replaced white pants with drab gray. And while I understand red was featured on the uniforms in the franchise’s early days, I don’t like the red numbers/socks on the road jerseys for “Big Blue.” — Dan Duggan

New York Jets

Best: ‘Classic’ (2024-Present)

The Jets used a combination in 2024 that’s kind of cheating but hard not to pick here. They called it their “classic,” a uniform honoring both the 1968 Super Bowl team and the uniforms the Jets wore from 1998-2018 to create a cool, old-school look that they should wear more often.

Worst: ‘Take Flight’ (2019-2023)

The worst uniforms were the ones they unveiled in 2019 — which happened to kick off one of the worst Jets stretches of football — a look that felt like the sort of bland jersey you’d create when building a team in Madden. — Zack Rosenblatt

Philadelphia Eagles

Best: Kelly Green alternate (2023-present)

Yes, the “Kelly green” brings nostalgia to Eagles fans, but I actually think it’s more effective as an alternate in the “midnight green” era than as a weekly staple. It feels bigger when they select the Kelly green games the past three seasons. And whether it’s advancements in camera technology or in uniform vibrancy, the color pops with the present-day uniforms even more than it did three decades ago. Players are fond of them, too.

Worst: Frankford Yellow Jackets throwback (2007)

In September 2007, the Eagles wore Frankford Yellow Jackets throwback jerseys against the Lions. The yellow and powder blue combination was better left in the 1920s. The colors have a nod to Philadelphia’s history (as seen on the city flag), but they didn’t leave the most favorable memories of a 56-21 Eagles victory. In fact, when I searched for that game, the first image result was a YouTube clip titled, “The Ugly Uniform Game.” — Zach Berman

Pittsburgh Steelers

Best: ‘Throwback’ home jerseys (2018-present)

The Steelers’ normal home jerseys are good (black with italicized white numbers). But their “throwbacks” are even better. Inspired by the 1979 jerseys, they feature block letters for the numbers. If you’re not a Steelers fan, you might not even notice the difference. But Pittsburghers love them to the point that there’s been a social media push to bring them back full time.

Bad, but not the worst: Bumblebees (2012-2016)

Who could forget? The black and gold striped jerseys, which were inspired by the 1934 uniforms, will go down as one of the weirdest jerseys of all time.

Worst: 1933 throwbacks (2025)

The concept comes from the 1933 jerseys and Pittsburgh’s city crest. The vertical black and yellow stripes look like a soccer jersey, and why are the numbers in the front white and the numbers in the back black? Especially with the yellow helmet, it’s an odd look. — Mike DeFabo

San Francisco 49ers

Best: Traditional road uniform (1964-present)

The 49ers’ home and away jerseys both are winners, but the road whites get a slight nod. That’s because the gold pants, which in the team’s heyday leaned more toward beige, have since become brighter, making them compete with the red jerseys. The white tops are more understated and thus a better complement.

Worst: Black Color Rush (2015-2017, 2025)

Black uniforms always sound good … until they’re put to the test. When the 49ers wore them beginning in 2015, there wasn’t enough contrast between the black background and the red stenciling, which made the numbers hard to see. Was it Garrett Celek (88) who just made that catch? Or was it Vance McDonald (89)? It didn’t help that the team went 1-4 in the alternates. — Matt Barrows

Seattle Seahawks

Best: Blue ’90s throwbacks (introduced in 2023)

Although these are from the past, whenever the Seahawks come out of the tunnel in them, they send a message about what’s to come. Receiver Jake Bobo said it best: “We’re good, and we look good. So, we’ll play good.”

Worst: Neon green (2009)

The neon-and-blue combination looks like what happens when a parent lets a child pick their outfit for the first day of school despite being far too young to have that kind of decision-making power. — Michael-Shawn Dugar

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Best: Late 90s home red (1997-2013)

The classic red jersey and the unique pewter pants are a perfect match for a team called the Buccaneers. The Creamsicles are a strong throwback colorway, but these home red uniforms are much easier to look at across a full season. Modern uniforms are fine, but the pants don’t match the pewter of old.

Worst: ‘Alarm Clock’ uniforms (2014-2020)

Something is off here. It feels like they were designed by an underpaid and understaffed corporate committee. No sense of joy anywhere to be found.  — Jacob Robinson

Tennessee Titans

Best: Houston Oilers blue (1975-1997)

If we’re talking franchise history (and not just Titans history), the Oilers’ old Columbia blue jerseys with red and white accents continue to rank among the best in NFL history. The good news? The Titans are basically going with those jerseys, starting in 2026.

Worst: Navy-themed redesign (2018-2025)

The Titans’ 2018 branding change de-emphasized the Columbia blue and produced mostly underwhelming combinations. The worst was the navy jersey, which looked more fit for the Arena League. — Joe Rexrode

Washington Commanders

Tied for best: White and burgundy (1979-1998)

The Commanders are bringing back a variation of the iconic uniforms from the franchise’s three Super Bowl wins, and for good reason: It’s crisp, it’s clean and it’s a classic — a reflection of the franchise at its peak. The version from the Gibbs era was even nicer than today’s, however, because players wore baggy sleeves, so the burgundy and gold stripes were more noticeable.

Tied for best: 70th anniversary alternates (2002-2003)

These were extraordinary. The gold pants were actually gold and not mustard yellow, the spear logo — another throwback the team is bringing back this year — harkened to the team’s past and the stripes on the sleeves and socks were perfect.

Worst: Commanders debut uniforms (2022-2025)

When the franchise unveiled its new name and logo in 2022, it also unveiled these uniforms that seem better fit for a recreational soccer team than a pro football franchise. The burgundy was brightened and looked a bit like USC’s “cardinal” red, the jersey numbers and names were difficult to view from afar and the overall ensembles lacked character — a complete departure from the team’s signature look. Plus, the all-black uniforms, while crisp, resembled the Steelers. — Nicki Jhabvala

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