Tacky or Timeless? Uniforms, Logos, and Colors of the NFC West

So we move onto the next category in the team analysis, and it is arguably the most subjective (and some would say least important). No one wants to cheer for the team with the hideous colors, so this is a factor in the team search. Now, a few things to keep in mind here:

1.  Every fan thinks "their" team has the best uniforms in the league. Every fan. Now, there are two schools of thought here, those that love the traditional/simple/classic looks and those that love the new-school/cool/modern uniforms. Both can be good, and if your team wears one or the other you've probably already talked yourself into liking that style more, it's just natural.

2.  There is absolutely no way I can be right or wrong here. I realize, if I don't give your team one of the highest scores then I'm inherently wrong in your mind, but I'm prepared to deal with that. The bottom line is this is nothing but my opinion. And on that note…

3.  I'll be the first to admit, my style is suspect. My favorite shirt is my highlighter-yellow polo shirt, I have a pair of white loafers that have been labeled as anything from "water shoes" to "gigolo shoes", and I have an affinity for argyle. So on that note, don't be offended by my choices here…

So with that in mind, let's see which teams are the most aesthetically pleasing…

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals - Fairly simple yet sharp. The cardinal red jerseys are a little generic, but the white road jerseys with the red shoulders are one of my favorites of the "new-school" class. The logo is simple but effective, with the Cardinal showing the perfect amount of fierceness without crossing too far into cartoonishness. They do (outside of the white helmets) lack a little bit of the distinctiveness of some of the great NFL uniforms, and granted, it's pretty hard to mess up red, black, and white, but the Cardinals have found a good balance between a new-school look with a classy feel.

9/15

San Francisco 49ers - The 49ers uniforms are in that unmistakable class of uniforms that seem to jump off a screen when you're flipping between games and let you know the 49ers are playing before the rest of your brain catches up to identify anything else. The home jersey is unmistakable and just gives you the feel of watching a big game. Is a lot of it due to the fact that we've seen so many great highlights with players wearing these same jerseys? Absolutely. Still, taking that away, can you think of any other instance where a male can mix red and gold and not look ridiculous? I can't, so I’m torn on why I think the 49ers uniforms look good. Have I been brainwashed by NFL films? Possibly. Still, there's something to be said for distinctiveness.

11/15

Seattle Seahawks - ELIMINATED - A very aquatic combination of navy, and blue the Seahawks apparently didn't want to branch out too far on the color spectrum when making their choice. As for the logo, I'm not sure if I showed it to someone with no NFL knowledge their first guess wouldn't be that it was a Seahawk (in fact, I don't think their first guess would even be a bird). Then, just as I'm about to say the uniforms are a little bland, I'm reminded of the unbelievably bright neon green jerseys that made their debut this season. I'm all for brightening up Seattle's colors a little, but a dash of white trim or maybe separating the colors by more than 2 shades would have helped. Instead, they gave new meaning to the nuclear option.

2/15

St. Louis Rams - ELIMINATED - If the Rams had never changed from the old school blue and yellow, they would have scored much higher. Instead, they traded in the boldness of the L.A. blue and yellow for a darker shade of blue and gold, opting for something a little more subtle. I still like the helmets, but liked them a lot better with the old colors.

5/15