NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Titans have a new coach in Robert Saleh for the upcoming season and are opening a new enclosed stadium in 2027.
So, no reason to wait to update their uniforms and logos.
The Titans unveiled their new look Thursday night at a party featuring current and past players. The new uniforms lean heavily on the history of the franchise, which started in 1960 as the AFL's Houston Oilers. The team celebrates its 30th season
in Tennessee this year.
“Today is about honoring over 65 years of our organization while confidently stepping into the next chapter, and I couldn’t be more excited for our players, our city, and our fans to wear this identity with pride,” owner Amy Adams Strunk said in a statement.
Cam Ward walked out in the team's new white jersey for the road while All-Pro defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons wore the “Titans blue” home jersey. Eddie George, the franchise's career rushing leader, made the final introduction before the team's current stars walked out.
“We built this legacy play by play, heartbreak by heartbreak, victory by victory,” said George, who was part of the team's first seven seasons in Tennessee and is now the coach at Bowling Green. “And now, the baton has been passed to a new generation.”
This is the franchise's third set of uniforms since unveiling the Titans name for the 1999 season.
Tennessee will wear what the team calls “Titans blue” jerseys while playing in Nashville that feature “TITANS” across the chest with numbers reflecting a college design. The white road jerseys feature “TENNESSEE” across the chest for the state that's been home since 1997. Red outlines the numbers.
Three stars reminiscent of the Tennessee flag representing the Volunteer State's three divisions will be in navy blue in a tab on the back of the uniform and on the side panel under the arm. The 6-String Stripe includes red on the pants, sleeves and helmets reflecting Nashville's reputation as Music City.
The Titans also showed off a new primary logo called The Shield, featuring the light Titans blue, white and red along with those three stars. A secondary mark is called The Football, featuring the letters “T” and “N” for the state's postal abbreviation and the city of Nashville.
Burke Nihill, the Titans' president and CEO, said the redesign had been in the works long enough that it wasn't tied to the team hiring Saleh in January. Nihill said Ward and Simmons loved the new uniforms at a photo shoot last week, and the color combination tapping into the Oilers' roots was intentional.
“We had players that were literally in the locker room after games not wanting to take off the jerseys,” Nihill said. “These are NFL players who played through high school and college and in the pros, and there was something special about the pride that they felt wearing that color scheme.”
The unveiling was part of a busy week for the Titans.
A team coming off four straight losing seasons opened the NFL's negotiating period with a big splash, committing more than $270 million to a handful of free agents. The Titans keep adding players to a roster with only 18 drafted players led by Ward and Simmons.
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