The More Things Change...

I was prepared... nay, excited, that I had the ability and freedom (gratzi, sir Dave) to write up a huge, giant, epic piece on our new Falcons uniforms. Boy, did I have a doozy planned. I was going to dissect every new piece of fabric, every small changed nuance, every nook and cranny of the new cut of the new jerseys.

Sadly, I have no reason to. I'll just let Nike tell you why I can't do that:

The Atlanta Falcons have chosen to stay with their traditional design aesthetic as well as their former uniform fabrication this year.

If you look at the picture(s) available here | here you will see no differences outside of the Nike swoosh. No Flywire collar, no Elite 51 fabrication, no nothing. It's the same exact jersey you might just have in your closet right now, sans the Reebok logo.

That's not to say changes will not happen. I'm certain they will. Just not this year. Or next. 2009 started the "Retro" uniform set change which did away with the modern black jersey (to some of your consternation) and Rich McKay said that the retro uniform program was a five year endeavor. Whether this was him imposing a five year retro or him sticking to the NFL's rule of "not more than one major uniform change in five years" is anyone's guess. I'm guessing the latter.

2014 marks the first year the Falcons are free, rule wise, to bring in a major set of changes to their uniforms. While I doubt highly that the NFL would have batted an eyelash at the Falcons getting a stitching makeover with the new Nike deal, I also feel that the administration is waiting...for something. I'm not predicting change two years from now but I am saying that it is possible we will see change soon. Not that I'd change much, really.

Interesting note: the Falcons are one of five teams who told Nike no on all the major cosmetic changes they brought to the NFL arena. The other four are the Packers, Raiders, Panthers, and Eagles.

Thoughts? Personally, I at least wanted to see the new Nike features like the collars and Elite 51 fabrication modernize our jerseys. I'm not disappointed really, as this means my Reebok jerseys are a swoosh away from still being "authentic."