The Lions on Thursday unveiled four new uniforms in front of "nearly 4,000 season-ticket holders," showing a "modern twist on the team’s traditional Honolulu blue and silver color scheme," according to Justin Rogers of the DETROIT NEWS. The look debuted with a "choreographed video and music presentation in the stadium’s atrium," with TE Eric Ebron, RB Ameer Abdullah and DE Ziggy Ansah on hand at Ford Field. The home uniforms "consist of a blue jersey and silver pants," with the white road uniforms "paired with blue bottoms." Returning are the "simple blue and silver throwback uniforms." The final option, the team’s Color Rush look, is an "all-silver package with white numbers." Nike Senior Design Dir Steve McClard, a Detroit native who led the project, worked closely with team President Rod Wood to "perfect the uniforms" (DETROIT NEWS, 4/14).
A FAN'S NOTES: McClard said when he heard the Lions were looking for a uniform redesign, his reaction was, "No one’s touching this but me." McClard: "What a dream to work on your hometown team." McClard said that the Lions' Wood "gave Nike instructions to 'pay respect to the tradition and the heritage of the team but do it in a modern way.'" Wood said that the team "hopes to wear all four jerseys" in the '17 season, but "won't decide which games to wear the throwback and Color Rush uniforms for until after the schedule comes out next week." In Detroit, Dave Birkett notes the throwback uniforms are "similar to ones they've worn in the past." Wood said that he wanted to "get rid of black from the team's color scheme." Former Lions GM Matt Millen "introduced black into the team's color scheme in the early 2000s, and the color has been synonymous with the losingest era in team history" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 4/14).
ODE TO THE OWNER: McClard said, “Peeling back, all the way back to the '30s, we definitely saw some patterns. The Lions used to have really simple, bold expressions of uniforms. ... It was kind of getting back to those simple, pure expressions our team set out as our main goal." ESPN.com's Michael Rothstein noted on the right sleeve of the new jerseys, the word “Lions” will be "screen printed." On the left sleeve, the initials “WCF” in honor of late team owner William Clay Ford will be "permanently part of the jersey." Wood said that the Lions had to "apply to the NFL to make it a permanent change to their jerseys" (ESPN.com, 4/13).
FANS & PLAYERS ALIKE: MLIVE.com's Kyle Meinke noted the uniforms were a "big hit among the thousands of fans" at Thursday night's event. Ebron: "I'm in love. ... It helps boost morale in the locker room when you're not looking at the same thing. You're looking at something new." The Lions have "ditched their black facemasks, and will now wear gray." They are the "seventh team to get new uniforms since Nike began outfitting the league" in '12, following the Browns, Jaguars, Dolphins, Vikings, Seahawks and Buccaneers (MLIVE.com, 4/13). In Detroit, Bill Shea wrote, "Aesthetically, they appear to be a modern take on a classic look" (CRAINSDETROIT.com, 4/13). NFL.com's Dan Hanzus wrote the changes "will seem extremely minor to most and wildly significant to others" (NFL.com, 4/13).
