July 29, 2023
After a very long wait, the Philadelphia Eagles have finally unveiled their long-anticipated Kelly green jerseys. And, well, they're spectacular. A look, via the Eagles' Twitter account:
Think we posted too many memes 🤷♂️@Toyota | #KellyGreenIsBack pic.twitter.com/2PsgNhAJDh
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) July 29, 2023
The above image leaked on social media before the Eagles had a chance to unveil the new jerseys themselves, so they were forced to reveal them on a Saturday night.
On Monday though, they were able to still reveal that the throwback uniforms would be worn twice this season, first in Week 7 against the Dolphins on October 22 and then in Week 12 against the Bills on November 26. Both games, obviously, are at home.
The Eagles last wore Kelly green jerseys (and helmets) during the 2010 season. Thereafter, the league implemented a rule that teams could only have one helmet color, on the basis that players would always wear the same helmet, which apparently at the time was viewed as some sort of player safety precaution. Occasionally, you might see teams like the Packers or Bears wear throwback helmets, but only the decals changed, not the base color of the helmet.
The Eagles could have worn Kelly green jerseys, but because the one-color helmet rule was in effect, they would still have to wear their midnight green helmets, and Kelly green jerseys with midnight green helmets would have looked dumb.
In June of 2021, however, the league approved a new rule that allowed for teams to have one alternate color helmet. But in a cruel twist, the football gods seemingly did not want the Eagles to wear Kelly green yet, and the Birds' plans were delayed because they had already submitted black as their alternate color for the 2022 season.
What?!? Why couldn't the league just allow the Eagles to change their alternate color? What's the big deal? Well, the short-short explanation is that Nike needed a certain amount of lead time in order to incorporate Kelly green into their color scheme, and the Eagles would much rather make sure they look right than rush their production.
As it turns out, they look great, and were perhaps worth the wait.
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