Cleveland Browns New Uniforms: Ask A Graphic Designer

Judging by Facebook and Twitter, many fans are pleased with what they saw from the Cleveland Browns new uniforms. I wrote last night they were OK, but wished there were chances that I wish the franchise would’ve taken.

I wanted to get an opinion of someone who has an eye of this stuff, so I reached out to a graphic designer who works in the sports logo design/merchandise business to get his opinion. He agreed to answer my questions anonymously. Here’s what he said.

Q: How do you think the Browns balanced please the older generation of fans, as well as the younger crowed, who can’t remember when Cleveland was a winner?

A: It’s evident that the Browns are trying to please the older generation of fans and newer generations as well. They are trying to find a balance so not to neglect either. Although the organization wiffed on the helmet, it seems as though they have redeemed themselves with the jersey.

Q: You’ve got the eye for detail. What are some of the changes we might initially miss?

A: There are nine uniform combinations, featuring orange, white and brown. Gone are the traditional five stripes on the sleeves and replaced with three larger bold stripes. Each jersey features the name of the city on the chest and also features the name of the team on the pants. The numbers feature a slight shading and is a call back to the1946 jersey (Which was also was a first for it’s time. It was the only jersey at the time to feature two-colored numbers). The new Dawg Pound logotype is also featured on the interior of each collar. (Why? 2015 marks the 30th anniversary of the Dawg Pound). The stripes on the pants also feature the Browns word mark.

Q: What do you like best?

A: The orange and white jersey’s honestly look pretty sharp! At first I was hesitant about the orange jersey from the leaked photos, but it has grown on me and is probably my favorite. My favorite combo is the orange jersey and brown pants.

Q: Which did you like least?

A: In my opinion the weakest jersey is the brown version. I’ve heard many complaints that it looks like a “FUBU” jersey. My only preference is to change the numbers to a white color and feature an orange shadow. My least favorite combo has to be the brown on brown – just not a good look. Also stick with a solid stripe down the pants – ditch the browns logotype! (I dont think any other NFL team has their logotype on the pants….and I think there’s a good reason for that).

Q: LOL, I liked the word “Browns” printed on the pants.

A: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Q: What surprised you the most?

A: The most surprising combo perhaps has to be the orange on orange. Most fans are going to love it or hate it. I actually don’t mind it too much but I guess we will see how it looks on the screen on Sundays.

Q: I thought poor Alex Mack looked like a bottle of hot sauce!

A: Better than a bottle of ketchup?

Q: How do these new uniforms play with the new helmet?

More from Factory of Sadness

A: It looks as though the helmets will have a satin finish and will not be a matte finish as everyone thought. The stripe will be larger and will feature a carbon fiber texture and of course the new brown face mask.

Q: Overall, did the Browns pass the new uniform test?

A: I recall Joe Thomas saying that it was only going to be a slight change. Honestly after the helmet reveal, I was going into this experience a little underwhelmed. I gotta hand it to the organization, they did a good job balancing the old with the new (even though they were leaked 2 days prior). Oh yeah, did I mention that it took Jimmy Haslam and the gang two years to develop these jerseys? Regardless of how you feel about the uniforms, if they don’t get the talent to fill the uniforms…they won’t mean a thing.

Next: New Uniforms Are OK, Was Hoping For Gun-Metal Gray

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