Through the two decades or so that the Houston Texans have been in existence, they’ve made minor adjustments to their uniforms a couple of times. At one point they slightly brightened the shade of deep steel blue in the jerseys. A few years ago, they added a small logo above the name plate of each jersey. These were relatively minor changes in need of very little fanfare.
Until Tuesday, they’d never unveiled a fully revamped and redesigned version of their uniforms. That all changed at 10 a.m. on Tuesday morning, with the following video:
When the team hit rock bottom a couple of years ago, Chairman and CEO Cal McNair decided enough was enough, and he tasked his management team to “fearlessly evolve.” In other words, let’s innovate and get better at everything we do. To McNair’s credit, the Texans HAVE gotten better at practically everything they do. Most notably, they now field one of the better actual football teams in the NFL.
Part of fearlessly evolving, though, included bringing the look and feel of the team into the 21st century, and hence, we have these new uniforms. There are four jerseys, four pants, and three different helmets, all of which are captured on this graphic bellow:
A few thoughts on the uniforms themselves and the backstory of what went into them:
I’m a big fan of the two alternate uniforms
The alternate uniforms are the Battle Red uniform and the Color Rush uniform (dark blue, red numbers, H-Town light blue trim), and according to this poll conducted by my colleague Clint Stoerner, the people (well, 1,000 of them on Twitter, at least) agree:
Keep in mind, the team will absolutely mix and match some of these jersey/pants/helmet combinations, just like they did last season, when, for example, they rocked the Color Rush uniforms with the Battle Red Helmet.
This was a super inclusive process to arrive at these designs
According to the team’s press release, they conducted over 10,000 surveys and 30 focus groups to arrive at these uniforms, with the ultimate goal being a design set that captures the fabric of the city. The Texans, if you haven’t been paying attention, have been leaning heavily into being a team by the city and for the city. “H-Town Made” is all over the marketing materials, and Houston rappers are as much a fixture around the team as Toro seems to be. It’s been a smart strategy, and these uniforms are a culmination of its execution.
One more reason to hate the Titans
The most widely incorrect guess from Texans fans as to what the biggest changes would be in the uniforms involved the light blue color the team is calling “H-Town blue.” That’s the color on the trim of the Color Rush uniforms. The hope among many fans had been that the team would have a full uniform with that shade of blue as the dominant color. However, with that shade of blue so closely resembling the old Oilers blue, Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk, whose team owns the rights to all Oilers intellectual property, made a big enough stink with the league, to where the Texans, Titans, and the NFL all had to compromise. The end result was the H-Tiown blue being a supporting color, not a main color. If you wanted full H-Town Blue uniforms, you know have yet another reason to boo a Bud Adams family member. Congrats!
If you’re looking to get your hands on some gear…..
Per the team’s press release:
Fans are invited to shop the new jerseys and exclusive merchandise beginning today at 10 a.m. at the Houston Texans Team Shop at NRG Stadium. The store is filled with new merchandise, apparel and accessories inspired by the new uniforms, including H merch, bull hoodies and jerseys. Fans can also shop online at Shop.HoustonTexans.com.
From Wednesday, April 24 – Saturday, April 27, fans can purchase merchandise at the Houston Texans Team Shop Pop Up on the on the first floor of the George R. Brown Convention Center off the Plaza at Avenida Houston. Hours of operation are April 24 and 25 from 1 – 8 p.m., April 26 from 1 – 10 p.m. and April 27 from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
The merchandise will also be available at the team’s 2024 Draft Party presented by Modelo on Friday, April 26. The free event, hosted by Houston First, is on the Plaza at Avenida Houston. Fans will be able to gain access to the party beginning at 5 p.m.
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This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
