Few sports teams dare to enter the realm of the unknown when it comes to their uniforms. Many organizations are scared to deviate from the beaten path of traditional color schemes, such as red and blue or blue and yellow. Now is the perfect time of the year to celebrate those who go where many fear to tread.
NFL: Cincinnati Bengals
Cincinnati recently retooled its identity and created one of the best in the NFL. Previously, the Bengals’ uniform set was overly reliant on dated piping, colored yokes and a gaudy drop shadow behind the numbers. Now, their refreshed selection of uniforms is much cleaner with a custom, streamlined font and simple shoulder striping on the edges of the shoulder pads that reflects the pattern of a tiger. Each uniform in the set is sharp, including the fan-favorite “white tiger” color rush alternate uniform. Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase are spooky enough for opposing defenses, and they look extra scary in a well-executed set of tiger-inspired digs.
NBA: Phoenix Suns
The Suns’ uniforms aren’t quite as intimidating as others on this list, but they do take the honor of being the most Halloween-colored in the NBA. A beautiful and unique mix of purple and orange makes Phoenix one of the league’s most eye-appealing organizations. Their current set, introduced just a few seasons ago, does a great job of blending a modern wordmark with the classic appeal of past uniforms, evident by the sun rays bursting upwards from the bottom of the shorts. The Suns have long been at the forefront of jersey trends in the NBA — their popular set of “fireball” uniforms in the 1990s proved that — and they have yet another classic set today.
MLB: Baltimore Orioles
Like the Bengals in the NFL, the Orioles are the only MLB team to wear orange and black. They’ve simplified their overall brand in the last decade after going 13 seasons with a primary logo that featured shades of orange, tan and green. In 2009, the team elevated a simple drawing of an oriole with an accompanying wordmark to primary status before moving toward a cartoon-style rendition of the bird in 2019. It is a clean look and the uniforms are just as simple, with a stylish orange “Orioles” wordmark adorning the home and alternate sets and an orange “Baltimore” mark on the road grays. Spooky? Not quite, but the team’s performance on the field lately certainly has been.
NHL: Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers are the lone Halloween-colored team in the NHL and have been so since the team’s inception in 1967. They’ve only modified their logo once, simply darkening the shade of orange that they used in 1999. The uniforms, meanwhile, are simple, clean and effective. A large “Flying P” logo jumps out on the front of the jersey, while a clean and unique striping style on the shoulders flows nicely and allows the set to take on some extra character. The Flyers also wear throwback alternates from time to time to keep things unique. Maybe they aren’t the scariest uniforms in the league, but the team’s mascot may be the scariest in all of professional sports.
NCAA: Oklahoma State
There are surprisingly few college teams who wear orange and black, but the Oklahoma State Cowboys do and do it well. The Cowboys have a slick football set that doesn’t rely too much on striping or piping, instead remaining clean and allowing the numbers and colors to do much of the talking. This minimalist excellence carries over to other sports as well. Plus, the professional career of former Cowboys quarterback Brandon Weeden is a great scary story to break out at your next campfire.
