The aesthetics of sports has never been a bigger business. Teams are constantly upgrading and updating their looks to keep up with the current style. With that said, there are few better NFL offseason exercises than redesigning team helmets.
This article focuses on some of the best and worst NFL helmet designs from all over the internet. We’ve given you one of each for all 32 NFL teams and given each a grade. Flip through the slides and see if you agree. What grade would you give your team? Enjoy!
Buffalo Bills
Best
What’s nice about this helmet is that it’s taken what’s good about the current Bills look and modified it. Essentially it’s just taken a beautiful white helmet with a charging buffalo on the side and made it blue instead. The current white helmet is perfect, this is pretty darn near perfect too. Grade: A
Worst
Nope, don’t like it. This concept has taken the idea of minimalism to an unhealthy level. Sure, that stripe is the stripe coming off the buffalo in the Bills logo, but where’s the buffalo? The buffalo is bringing the energy, hence the stripe. But if he isn’t there, there can be no stripe. Grade: F
Miami Dolphins
Best
This concept gets it right. It’s simple, put a big dolphin on a white helmet with teal and orange stripes. It’s an update on the classic look the team has worn forever. Well done. The only way this could be better is if the Dolphin was wearing a helmet, like in the original logo. Grade: A-
Worst
If this was just an orange helmet with a slim blue dolphin on the side we might have something here. But the designer put what appears to be a stock image of tap water on the bottom of the helmet. Aside from the fact that that looks so tacky and cheap, the designer didn’t even bother to put the dolphin in the water. It’s a levitating dolphin. Grade: D
New England Patriots
Best
This concept is brilliant. This is a helmet. Patriot Pat is big and bold. The white helmet is fresh, especially with the red facemask. Tom Brady is gone, it’s time for a new era. This is it, and it’s excellent. Grade: A-
Worst
The concept is a mixed bag. There are things to like here like the blue helmet, the chrome red facemask, and even the stripes. The problem is those all look good individually, but together they clash. It’s just too busy. Grade: C-
New York Jets
Best
This concept really nails it. The logo is clear, and stands out. There’s clearly a jet on top of the NYJ, for New York Jets. The helmet introduces that seafoam green that has worked so well up in Seattle. The Jets are already the second team in New York, why not try something that’s already working for someone else? Grade: B+
Worst
Military imagery on sports uniforms walks a thin line between pandering and respectful. In reality, probably only the service academy schools should use it, but this is America so here we go. In this case, this helmet looks pretty bad. We get what they’re trying to do here, it’s a pilots helmet, but it just doesn’t work. Grade: D
Pittsburgh Steelers
Best
This may be a controversial pick because it eliminates the colors from the steel badge on the side of the helmet, but the designer is limited in what is possible given that the badge almost has to be included on the helmet. Going with just two colors is a neat way to pull this off. In fact, this would look good with a Steelers “Color Rush” jersey. Grade: B+
Worst
Oh boy. This concept goes hard into the Steelers logo. Sure it’s unique to the Steelers identity as it is the logo belonging to the American Iron and Steel Institute, and is known as the Steelmark. The problem is without the rest of the logo it looks like the face paint of a court jester. And nobody wants to be a jester. Grade: C
Baltimore Ravens
Best
This concept is excellent. Gone is that weird bird, thankfully. The stylized B is cool, but the real winner here is the Maryland state flag pattern that is subtlety and menacingly lingering at the bottom of the helmet. Put a black facemask on this bad boy and you’ve got yourself the instrument of a modern-day gladiator. Excellent work here. Grade: A
Worst
With respect to the designer, this is awful and boring all around. The helmet is too dark, it’s nearly impossible to tell that the facemask is purple. Why even bother making the facemask purple? Then they simply stuck the existing raven head logo on the helmet and called it a day. It’s lazy. Grade: F
Cleveland Browns
Best
If you have to update a classically perfect helmet like the Browns this is how to do it. The helmet remains simple, with a few colored stripes on the bottom of the helmet, but the designer cleverly adds a bit of old-fashioned football into the helmet. Adding the numbers on the side harkens back to the football of yesteryear, which helps to keep the Browns “vintage” aesthetic in tact. Grade: B+
Worst
We’re going to stop you right here Browns helmet number 2. The helmet stripes go down the middle of the helmet, not from the back of the head to the jawline. For what it’s worth, any Browns helmet redesign that does not feature Brownie the Elf is missing an obvious home run. Grade: C-
Cincinnati Bengals
Best
They didn’t have to do much to make This concept a winner. The helmet looks darker, more menacing. Essentially they took an orange helmet with black stripes and made it a black helmet with orange stripes. The change is subtle but powerful. This is an impressive look. Grade: A
Worst
Honestly, what is going on here? Have they really tried to put the eyes of a Bengal tiger on the crown of the helmet. That’s an absolutely ridiculous idea. If only we could get a head-on view to see exactly how ridiculous it would be. This is trying too hard to be clever, and that’s almost always a no-go. Grade: F
Tennessee Titans
Best
This redesign for the Titans has to be one of the finest redesigns in the entire set. The original Titans/Oilers colored flames coming off the facemask is awesome. The fact that the facemask is light blue shows an attention to detail that is unmatched. Really good job. Grade: A+
Worst
Picture the head-on view of this helmet. We have to assume there’s the same exact design on the other side. So what this ends up looking like from the front is that the player wearing the helmet has flaming blue eyebrows. That’s not cool. That’s a look an actual circus clown would try out. Grade: D
Indianapolis Colts
Best
The Colts have one of the most traditional looks in all of football, so it’s nice to see the modern touches put on the helmet in this concept. The white stripes really pop and give a classic look a much-needed update. Grade: B
Worst
The artist had tried too hard with this one. Yes, when you turn a horseshoe on its side it looks like a “C” for Colts, and yes the horseshoe fits better on the helmet turned like that but it doesn’t make much sense to turn it like that. The luck flows out of the horseshoe if it’s pointing the way it is traditionally positioned on the Colts helmet. Don’t mess with luck! Grade: C
Houston Texans
Best
For this concept the artist has taken the logo and put half of it on either side of the helmet, making it look like you’re looking into the face of the bull. That’s a pretty cool look, but it’s possible the white facemask blows the illusion. Close, but no cigar. Grade: B+
Worst
To the designers of Concept 2, we have just one question. Where’s the other half of the logo? On the helmet, we only see the blue half. Where’s the rest? This is no good. Grade: D
Jacksonville Jaguars
Best
This concept has the Jaguars going back to the two-tone look that they tried out a few years ago. The upgrade here is the teal fades to black and not black to gold. It’s a much better look. The two-tone face mask is really cool too. Grade: B+
Worst
Ok, what’s going on here? This helmet may have actually been pretty cool if they had only used the Jaguar pattern along the bottom of the helmet and put some sort of design on the top, like numbers or a “J” for Jaguars and Jacksonville. But this just looks bizarre. Almost like the jaguar has dislocated its jaw in order to eat something really large. The whole center of the cat’s face is missing. Grade: D+
Kansas City Chiefs
Best
The Chiefs are another team like the Browns and Packers that have very classic helmets that teams are hesitant to mess with. What’s nice about this upgrade is that it’s subtle but effective. This upgrade brings the Chiefs helmet into the 21st century without making radical changes that scream 21st century, like when the Seahawks introduced that electric green color. Grade: B+
Worst
This concept has stuck with the original design with some slight, but damaging changes. What has happened to the Chiefs logo? It looks as if it is a balloon that has come unknotted and is deflating midflight. Or like it’s one of Salvador Dali’s famous melting clocks. Something’s not right here. Grade: C
Las Vegas Raiders
Best
The Raiders have such a solid and classic look it’s tough to improve on it, but this concept has. Throw the Raider logo on a black helmet instead of a silver one and you’ve got an incredible look suitable for the new black hole in Las Vegas. Grade: A
Worst
We have genuine questions about what is on this helmet. Seriously, what is that pattern supposed to be? It’s unintelligible and grating on the eyes. Sure, that could be said about many of the residents of the Raiders’ “Black Hole”, but in this case we’re talking about the helmet. This is a non-starter. Grade: D
Los Angeles Chargers
Best
This is one of the best helmets in the entire set. The Chargers have the best uniforms and helmets in all of sports, so it’s impossible to top that, but this does a pretty good job. The color scheme has changed a bit and gone darker but it works. The bolts have a bit more of an artistic flair to them and aren’t so “Microsoft Paint.” Grade: A
Worst
From one excellent helmet that does away with amateur lightning bolts to a helmet that adds more amateur lightning bolts. This helmet is astonishingly stupid. If the helmet has a giant lightning bolt adorning each side of the helmet, why do you need to put different-looking lightning bolts all over the thing? It’s bad, just bad. Grade: F
Denver Broncos
Best
It seems like every time there is a Broncos helmet update the artist incorporates the light blue from the “Orange Crush” days of the Broncos. What has happened with Concept 1 is a merger of the two helmets. The color scheme is from the “Orange Crush”, but with the modern Broncos logo. It’s ok, but nothing to get too excited about. Grade: C+
Worst
The designer needed to stick with one gimmick on this helmet. Either go with horses or go with the mountains. Yes, Denver is the mile-high city and is surrounded by the Rocky Mountains, but that has nothing to do with horses. Also, it looks bad. The way the orange sky mixes with the Bronco logo is no good. Grade: D+
Washington Football Team
Best
(A disclaimer for both of these designs is that the football team in Washington is no longer called the Redskins and at the time of publication there is no current nickname, logo, or color scheme for the team.)
Concept 1 does a nice job of avoiding the actual logo image of the Redskins franchise, but yet still is very clear about who the team is. The feathers are placed behind the forehead as they would be on a traditional Native American headdress. There is even an example of a two-tone helmet being done excellently. Grade: B+
Worst
Lord knows why the designer decided to put sparkles over the top of this image because it’s sure isn’t anything special to look at. The issues with indigenous people imagery aside, this is a pretty crappy helmet. The small set of feathers on the helmet are dwarfed by the rest of the maroon dome. It looks sad. Grade: C-
New York Giants
Best
This concept is back with the bottom stripes and this time we are all about it. The colors do all the work here. Maybe it’s just the inherent patriotism of a red, white, and blue helmet but the look is terrific. The Giants have waffled between essentially the same two bland helmet designs for decades. This would be a welcome upgrade. Grade: A-
Worst
People need to stop putting skylines on helmets. It doesn’t look nearly as cool as you think it does. And look at this one, you can barely see the NYC landmarks because it’s so dark. Also, the NY logo is so small. Remember, the NFL is a television sport. You won’t be able to see any of these details on the screen, or in the stands for that matter. Grade: D+
Dallas Cowboys
Best
This concept for the Cowboys is another case of a helmet being so universally associated with a team it’s difficult to imagine a different look. It’s not a bad look, the navy helmet instead of silver. It’s not shiny though, and you can’t imagine Jerry Jones would be a fan of that. Grade: B
Worst
You could argue that this helmet and the helmet above it are very similar, and you’d be right. However, the thing that this helmet does wrong is an attempt to copy the color of the Cowboys’ pants. If there’s one thing mystery above all mystery’s in sports uniforms it’s why the Cowboys wear that weird shade of blue? Nobody should try to copy that, and that is why this helmet falls into the “worst” category. Grade: C
Philadelphia Eagles
Best
This concept got a simple thing correct right off the bat. They went back to the old Kelly Green that the Eagles were known for forever. About the time the Donovan McNabb era started, they went darker with the green and ever since fans have been crying out for a return. The Eagles helmet is already great so a simple color change was all that was needed. Grade: A
Worst
So the scallop design underneath the wings is supposed to be bird feathers, right? But is anyone else unsettled by them? The green color makes them look like snakeskin or the skin of an alligator. something about this helmet is making us uncomfortable. Grade: C-
Green Bay Packers
Best
Will the Packers ever wear a helmet that looks like this? No. Is it the best possible redesign of the Green Bay Packers helmet? Probably not. But is it the most fun? Absolutely. The NFL are fun-suckers when it comes to equipment and uniforms, but it sure would be fun for the Packers to pull these on for a game a year. Grade: A
Worst
Here’s another classic that it’s difficult to improve on and not commit sacrilege by updating. Concept 1 goes with their tried and true method of putting some stripes on the bottom of the helmet. It’s not bad, it just looks weird to have the Packers helmet be anything but plain and simple. Grade: C+
Chicago Bears
Best
Not much has changed from the standard-issue Bears helmet here in Concept 1. The main difference is the pop of orange on the facemask and the helmet stripe. It’s a really sharp update. The additions bring this helmet into the 21st century. Grade: B+
Worst
The Chicago C on the crown of the helmet has the potential to be an interesting design change if the rest of the helmet looks good. Unfortunately, in this case, it doesn’t look good. The orange facemask stands out and not in a good way, and the claw marks on the side are just tacky. Grade: D+
Minnesota Vikings
Best
At first glance, this concept looks pretty similar to the current Vikes helmet. The artist has prioritized gold in favor of white, but that’s pretty much it. What takes this helmet to the next level is the Viking braid down the center stripe on the helmet. That is an incredible addition that should be added to the current Vikings helmet immediately. Grade: A
Worst
Undoubtedly this is supposed to look like a yellow Viking helmet with a braid flowing out from underneath. It’s just unnecessary. The current Viking football helmet does a terrific enough job of illustrating that without putting a braid on the side. Grade: C-
Detroit Lions
Best
This concept knocks it out of the park for the Lions. This is a stunning helmet. The electric blue profile of the lion on top of the midnight black helmet is outstanding. The blue facemask gets a bit mixed up in the lion outline but we’ll let it slide. This one is excellent. Grade: A
Worst
Here are two more helmets that appear on the surface to be similar but are actually quite different. While the one above has a matte black finish and dynamic blue coloring, this Lions helmet is an outdated shiny black with dull blue coloring. This is just the regular Lion’s helmet in black. Nothing exciting here. Grade: D
New Orleans Saints
Best
Concept 2 has gone in a completely different direction and has gone with a white helmet. This works really well because of the details and color differentiation on the fleur-de-lis. The gold and black helmet stripe is a nice touch too. Grade: A-
Worst
Gradients on helmets are tough to pull off. When done right they can be very cool. When done like this they can look like a bad airbrush job you got done at the mall in 1998. Really, the coloring on the golden dome is all thrown off and even the gradient is all over the place as it changes colors. Grade: C-
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Best
The only way this redesign would have been outdone is by putting an entire pirate ship plus the old Bucco Bruce logo on the helmet. That’s exactly what has happened on Concept 2. This helmet is without peers in this group. It’s a masterpiece. We’ll start the petition now to get Tom Brady in this helmet ASAP. Grade: A+
Worst
The garnet helmet looks like images you’d see from the Hubble telescope of a galaxy far away. It’s kind of cool to look at but then you remember it’s a football helmet and the fact that pirates have nothing to do with outer space. So then why does the helmet look like this? Only Paul Bunyan Designs knows the answer to that. Grade: C
Carolina Panthers
Best
This concept for the Carolina Panthers is excellent. With one of the most unique and attractive color schemes in the entire league, it’s about time they made a bold decision about their uniforms. The blue helmet is striking. It’s made even better by the black logo and facemask. Grade: A
Worst
The Panther logo is almost too minimalistic to be seen properly, but when you do realize what’s going on there it’s no good either. They’ve tried to put the cat face on the front of the helmet so it looks like the cat is facing you when you’re looking at the player. It’s too much and doesn’t work. Grade: F
Atlanta Falcons
Best
Beautiful. There’s something really great about a red helmet. Also, this is as good a time as any to let you know that the Falcons logo is a bird in the shape of the letter F. Pretty clever design. Grade: A
Worst
This designer thought they could pull a fast one on us, didn’t they? This is just the current Falcons logo rotated a bit, isn’t it? Once you see that it makes this helmet look utterly ridiculous. Couldn’t they have spent the time to draw a new wings logo if wings were what they wanted? Lazy. Grade: F
Seattle Seahawks
Best
What is really neat about this helmet design is that the designer used the stripe pattern from the current uniforms on the helmet. That’s a nice touch that didn’t go unnoticed. Other than that, this helmet is pretty cool. The green facemask is nice and we’d love to see a green visor but there’s no way the NFL would allow that. Grade: A-
Worst
Seattle has always been on the cutting edge of what’s visually acceptable on a sports uniform. Concept 1 really pushes the boundary even further. The gradient is an eyesore and the shiny facemask doesn’t match the rest of the helmet. Overall, it’s pretty bad. Grade: D
Los Angeles Rams
Best
This concept has tried to make something decent out of the Rams’ new mess of a logo. It’s the classic rams horn design but with a modern touch. All things considered, this is a pretty decent design. It’s definitely better than what they’ve got currently. Grade: B
Worst
There are some weird patterns and textures going on on this helmet. It looks like the regular Rams helmet from the St. Louis days but the Ramshorn is shiny while the blue background isn’t but has horizontal pinstripes. It’s a weird look made even weirder by the fact that you wouldn’t be able to see the pinstripes on the helmet unless you were on the field playing in the game. Grade: C-
Arizona Cardinals
Best
This is good execution of an idea that this designer has tried on helmets before, including the one below it. They finally got right the eye towards the front of the helmet. What they got right was the spacing and the outline around it so it was still very clear what was going on on the helmet. Nice job. Grade: A
Worst
This concept is actually the worst helmet we’ve ever seen. The only discernable feature about the helmet is the eye creeping out of an oddly shaped field of black. We can only surmise that the helmet is intended to be a closeup of a Cardinal’s face, but the execution is absolutely awful. Grade: F
San Francisco 49ers
Best
This helmet provides a really nice update and modernization to the 49ers helmet, which hasn’t changed much over the decades. There is some gold on the helmet, but it’s the red that’s the star of the show. And who would have guessed that the SF logo would do just fine without that silly ring holding it in pace. Grade: A-
Worst
Two main problems here. The first is that there’s no gold on the helmet. What were the 49ers arriving in California looking for? That’s right, gold. The other problem relates to the first. The helmet is too dark. The black is smothering and the red doesn’t do anything to pop without an outline around it. It’s just not a good look for the 49ers. Grade: C-