Mile High Sports

Denver Broncos throwback uniforms, helmet should be permanent branding

Rich Kurtzman
Denver Broncos celebrate a turnover in their throwback uniforms.

Denver Broncos celebrate a turnover in their throwback uniforms. Credit: Ron Cheney, USA TODAY Sports.

The Waltons don’t need to reinvent the wheel, they should make the Denver Broncos throwback uniforms permanent.

After purchasing the team in 2022, the billionaires wanted to make a splash. They decided to update the Broncos uniforms, which we’ve seen this season.

But those new jerseys pale in comparison to the brilliant orange and blue throwbacks we just witnessed on display.

Denver Broncos throwback uniforms are the answer to the branding question

It makes sense.

The Waltons bought the Denver Broncos for $4.65 billion, a world-record price for a sports franchise. So, of course the new ownership group wanted to leave their mark on the team.

And the way to do that is by changing their uniforms.

Unfortunately, given their August, 2022 purchase date, there wasn’t enough time to do a complete logo redesign. So, they went with a cheap, knockoff version of a new uniform and kept the logo the same.

The 2024 uniforms look like something you’d buy from a street vendor outside Mile High Stadium, not an officially licensed product at Walmart (or Gart Bros.).

Some have speculated that the 2024 half-done redesign uniforms are only a placeholder for a more complete overhaul of the jerseys and the primary logo. A new logo takes time, more than the year-and-a-half it took to change the look of the uniforms.

But, hopefully the Waltons and Damani Leach realize: They already have the perfect uniforms and logo.

Those incredible 1977 Denver Broncos throwback uniforms should be the permanent choice in the Mile High City. And on the road.

From 1970-1996, the Broncos repped Denver with that iconic D logo on their helmets. And they were always recognizable on highlight tapes with the bright, brilliant orange and lighter shade of blue.

The orange and blue uniforms, which spanned two-and-a-half decades of use, are literally iconic. They are not only the most recognizable uniforms in Broncos history, they are among the best uniforms in NFL history.

Waltons should keep customers satisfied, give Broncos fans the old-school uniforms

Everything old is new again.

Fashion is cyclical. Baggy jeans, jorts, fanny packs, and “dad hats” are all in; what is this, 1990?

If the Broncos want to be on-trend, they should bring back their 90s (and earlier) uniforms and logo.

In 1997, when Pat Bowlen changed the longstanding logo and colors, fans were upset. Many thought the navy blue and burnt orange resembled the Chicago Bears’ color scheme. But some of those who disliked the change got over it when the Broncos won back-to-back Super Bowls in them.

Broncos Country still wanted to see their team in predominantly orange jerseys, which is why the team changed back to orange tops in 2012. Bowlen listened to the fans, and Denver’s been wearing that burnt orange as their primary home uniform color since.

And as this 2024 uniform redesign was happening, many Broncos fans just wanted what we got on Sunday in the 1977 throwbacks.

It’s not just the die-hard fans who want the Denver Broncos throwback uniforms to be permanent, but national media members, too.

 

The players loved them, too. Even before playing in them.

The organization already spent time and money working hard to get these Denver Broncos throwback uniforms correct. And they are just that, perfect.

Using the old-school look as the new branding isn’t a half measure, it’s the simplest and best solution to new ownership wanting to leave a mark on the franchise.

Will the Waltons do just that? It seems unlikely, but it is possible.

For now, we can only dream of seeing those beautiful uniforms every week on the gridiron.

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