Arizona Cardinals' uniform debate reignites with NFL uniform ranking: 'Stuck in Reebokland'

Jeremy Cluff, Arizona Republic
·7 min read
1

Before the season, quarterback Kyler Murray rekindled new uniform talk for the Arizona Cardinals with an Instagram story.

A new ranking of NFL uniforms has reignited the conversation.

UniMockups.com ranked the Cardinals' uniform No. 30 in the NFL earlier this week.

There are 32 teams.

It wrote of the team's look: "Talk about dated. These are stuck in Reebokland and AZ fans really want change, but ownership was somehow unaware."

The site listed the classic helmet, colors, and decent numbers as pros of the team's uniform.

It listed the piping, panels, forced black alternates and side stripes as cons.

NFL Week 14 picks, predictions, odds:

Interestingly, the site's Twitter account posted that the Cardinals could be working on a uniform change, which would be welcome news to many fans.

The ranking prompted a lot of takes about the team's look on social media.

Interestingly, Yardbarker posted a story about each NFL team's best and worst uniform earlier this week.

It called the team's 1989-93 road uniform the team's best.

Sam Robinson wrote: "We start with the then-Phoenix Cardinals' white-on-red away attire. What bumps these over the Aeneas Williams-Jake Plummer-era home attire: the Arizona state flag on the sleeves. The Cards relocated from St. Louis in 1988 but did not use this wrinkle until '89. Featuring it for five seasons gave the team some additional flair. And let's face it: The Cardinals of the '90s wore some pretty basic home uniforms. Rod Tidwell did spend most of "Jerry Maguire" in the reds, but mid-montage, there is a clip of the brooding wideout sprinting for a touchdown in the whites."

As for the worst look, it went the team's current away uniforms.

Robinson wrote: "The Cardinals ditched their longtime uniform in 2005, moving to a look not as timeless as their previous threads. These stirrups, particularly displeasing on the team's road white-on-white design, have seen their time pass. It's unfortunate Larry Fitzgerald was required to wear these in all but one season of his Hall of Fame career. The random splash of red on the shoulder pads does not help Arizona's cause. The Kyler Murray era needs a rebrand soon."

More: NFL power rankings head-scratchers: Arizona Cardinals as low as No. 5 in NFL Week 14 lists

Quarterback Kyler Murray isn't the only person who would like to see the Arizona Cardinals get new uniforms.
Quarterback Kyler Murray isn't the only person who would like to see the Arizona Cardinals get new uniforms.

Speaking of Murray, in April, the Cardinals quarterback posted a mockup of some uniforms for the Cardinals, starting a wave of talk about the Cardinals' need for new uniforms.

In the 2020 offseason, he was caught commenting about his team's uniforms on his Twitch livestream.

“No, I don’t like our uniforms,” Murray said. “They’re outdated.”

USA TODAY Sports ranked the Cardinals' uniform the worst in the NFL before the season.

Nate Davis wrote: "QB Kyler Murray and, apparently, an overwhelming faction of the fan base want an overhaul. They're right, it's long overdue. Piping + panels = putrid. What was wrong with the Pat Tillman era, featuring Arizona's state flag on simpler white jerseys anyway?"

More: Arizona Cardinals can clinch first NFL playoff berth since 2015 in NFL Week 14

Several other sites similarly disparaged Arizona's uniforms before the start of the season.

Many people weighed in with their thoughts on how to fix the Cardinals' look, including USA TODAY Sports' Mackenzie Salmon, who said: "The Falcons got the memo. Piping is dead, you need to follow suit. These jersey designs scream 2007. Kyler deserves better. Here's the fix. The helmet is perfect because it's simple. The uniform should be the same. Bring back the Pat Tillman, Jake the Snake Cardinals jerseys with a slight modern flare. Gotta bring back that Arizona flag too."

Cardinals fans joined Murray and others before the season pleading for an update to the team's uniform, which hasn't had a new primary look since 2005.

One fan wrote in response to an overwhelmingly one-sided azcentral sports Twitter poll calling for the Cardinals to get new uniforms: "Mr Bidwill. K1 and, so far, 92% of all fans who have voted are in essence pleading for new unis. I would add, my vote would be for a helmet redesign too. As a fan, I feel this would do wonders for the psyche of players, personnel and fans, as well as marketing."

Murray and the writers and fans calling for a new Cardinals look didn't get their wish granted in 2021.

Perhaps the Cardinals will unveil a new uniform in 2022?

More: NFL MVP odds: Is Arizona Cardinals' Kyler Murray not getting enough respect in MVP race?

Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.

Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com today.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: NFL uniform rankings: Arizona Cardinals' uniform debate reignites