This might be an unpopular opinion but I’ll say it- I’m not that impressed with these new rivalry uniforms. Something just feels off about them. I’m not sure if it’s the shade of purple and gold but I feel like these uniforms are meant for the Baltimore Ravens, not the Minnesota Vikings. They just feel too modern or futuristic which isn’t really my style.
You want to get me excited about uniforms? Bring back those early-2000’s bright purple uniforms with the Norseman logo on the sleeve. Take me back to Daunte Culpepper throwing a moon ball to Randy Moss at the Metrodome. Take me back to the likes of Michael Bennett, Chris Hovan, Jim Kleinsasser, and Bryan McKinnie.
And yes- I know the Vikings did a version of those jerseys a few years ago and it was magnificent. The only thing missing in my opinion was they should have just fully embraced those jerseys and done an exact replica of them.
Look, I’m not trying to be the party pooper or the old man yelling at the clouds but I think nostalgia wins more often than not when it comes to jerseys. Remember how pumped Wild fans were last year when the Wild brought back their original white jerseys as an alternate? Or the North Star colors? Or how about last year when the Timberwolves brought back their classic black jerseys from the KG days? That’s what gets the blood pumping because it brings all sorts of fun memories from younger days as fans.
A perfect example was yesterday when the Gophers announced they were bringing back their gold chrome helmets. Why is everyone excited about that? Because it brings back memories of the best game I have ever attended in-person, that 2019 Minnesota-Penn State game that I still watch the highlights of from time-to-time to evoke the emotions of that day.
So while I think it’s fun for teams like the Vikings to try some new alternate uniforms from time-to-time, I do think teams have a tendency to overthink those uniforms. And I think the Vikings may have done that here with these rivalry uniforms. They just don’t feel very “Vikings” to me. At least we’ll only have to see them one time this season and then hopefully they’re put to bed for good.
spot on