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BREAKING! Detroit Lions Will NOT Wear Throwbacks on Thanksgiving

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The Detroit Lions just dropped some absolutely terrible uniform news.

They will NOT … repeat … NOT be wearing their throwbacks for Thanksgiving.

Instead, they’ll wear their Monolulu Blue uniforms, in which they are undefeated this season.

Obviously, I was under the impression they were going to wear their throwbacks, and even the vaunted Gridiron Uniform Database had them in their throwbacks:

BOOOOOOO!

This season, we learned the Lions are an extremely uni-superstitious team, sticking almost entirely with their Monolulu Blues at home, and their mono-whites on the road. They’re undefeated in both. They’ve worn two other uniform combos as well. In week 2, in their sole loss for the season, the team wore their best combo — the one with silver-gray pants and stripes:

The only other combo they’ve worn has been their new alternate, with the blue helmet and all black everything else. The team is obviously a uni-superstitious lot, sticking with uniforms in which they’ve consistently won, but to the detriment of those with eyes.

It’s almost sacriledge that they’re not wearing throwbacks tomorrow.

I understand this decision from a “winning” perspective — as Crash Davis would remind us about a player on a streak. But they haven’t worn the throwbacks this year, so they’re *also* undefeated in those. Folks turing in their TV sets tomorrow expecting to see the 1950s uniforms are going to be sorely disappointed.

As I am sure you all are.

I was a big fan of the Lions last year when they went on a deep playoff run — the loveable loser franchise came within one win of reaching their first Super Bowl. This year, they’re prohibitive favorites. But with this move, I won’t be rooting for them to reach the Supe anymore. I could stomach them sticking with the Monolulu Blues and mono-whites since they have had incredible success in them. But at least I thought we’d get the Throwback on Thanksgiving. It’s a special day. Why even re-introduce the throwback with the new uniform set if you’re not going to wear it on Turkey Day???

At least I won’t feel too guilty if I don’t watch much of the early game tomorrow.

BOO Lions. BOO!!!!

 
  
 
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Comments (0)

    I don’t have perfect attendance here anymore, so it’s the first time I’ve seen the term “Monolulu blue.” Love the term, of course hate the look. LOL.

    Very disappointing. I love the Lions throwbacks on Thanksgiving.

    Crossing my fingers that the Bears repeat their throwbacks from last week… really show the Lions how it’s done.

    37-45-2 is the lions record on thanksgiving. growing up it was tradition for us michiganders to watch thanksgiving parade, then eat lethargic turkey, wake up for a 4th quarter collapse, and warm up leftovers for black friday shopping. I can see why they are changing it up, especially after last year’s jake harlow & team grey-cold performance. hope universe enjoys family/friends!

    “We’re a tough kneecap-biting team… but we’re deathly afraid of our silver pants.”

    Give me a break.
    If you’re actually good you can win in anything. Forget Crash Davis (Billy Chapel was better anyway). Forget the streak. Forget superstition. Just wear the silver pants.

    Thank you Jim, you had the best post here. I keep saying this about the Lions too, if you’re really that good then you should be able to easily win in any uni combo you play in if you’re really that good. A uniform combo should not help you win games. It’s so ridiculous and it makes me not want to have respect for this team.

    Let’s be honest, they’re facing the worst team in their division and they need a specific uni combo to beat them. LOL!

    The Bucs up until this point was probably the toughest team they faced at home this season and they chose to wear blue on silver against them and lost. Why not wear that combo against the Titans and Jags?

    It’s so ridiculous and it makes me not want to have respect for this team

    Same here.

    My disrespect for them is approaching the level of disrespect I had for the Vikings when they moved to the Metrodome. Soft or superstitious… neither one will score any points with me.

    Okay, I don’t hate the Monolulu Blue as much as some seem to, but I am a little bummed on this choice. The throwbacks are almost as essential on Thanksgiving as turkey itself.

    As a superstitious Lions fan, I like this. Stick with what you are rolling with. This is a big game in an important season. Throwbacks would kinda feel like a gimmick, a distraction.

    As it is, the Lions are going with the distracting gimmick that they imagine works for them.

    It’s crazy though how the Lions need a certain uni combo to beat the worst team in the division this season.

    Lions Thanksgiving tradition of wearing throwbacks led to zero Superbowls. Maybe this is a good thing if you want Lions to compete–and hopefully win–a Superbowl.

    I’m happy for the Lions, but I absolutely hate that they’ve pretty much cemented that mono uniforms will be the norm for probably the next decade at least. The mono look has gotten completely out of hand.

    So many teams go with imo their worst look as their main ones, Detroit, Arizona, New Orleans, Seattle, and others like Carolina are getting into it as well. New England at least seems to be working in the silver pants more.

    I’ve never understood the “superstition” about it. The Saints suck but keep wearing the all black.

    I’m not a fan myself, but the monochrome unis are VERY popular here in Detroit. Even taking superstition out of the equation, people like the look. Same with Michigan in solid navy, most people under 40 (including the students and players) absolutely LOVE it!
    While I disagree, I understand we all are victims of the times. I still prefer pullover baseball jerseys with sansabelt pants because that was “the look” when I was a kid. I think most Uni Watchers disdain those as much as mono football uniforms. So I’m guilty as well.

    That’s one of the things I have to keep telling myself, that they are doing it for a reason because clearly someone is loving the mono look. I don’t hate it by itself, I just hate when they make it the default look. It just looks weird to do it all the time. I hate the idea of the Lions finally making a Super Bowl and playing in mono blue and they would because the NFC is the home team this year

    U-M student & Lions fan here: I think they should outlaw blue pants for both teams. Especially Michigan.

    Not really, in Michigan they’ve worn the traditional combos plenty of times this season despite winning the National Title Game in the mono blue. They didn’t completely sellout like the Lions did where we don’t see the traditional combo sets at all.

    There’s a lot of people in Michigan tired of not seeing Lions in blue on silver. I think people liked it better last year because it wasn’t something that was regular until last year for both teams. Lions fans have just about had it this season with these sets. Of course some fans like it, but overwhelming majority don’t.

    What’s the big deal? The throwbacks are boring as all get out. No logo, no stripes. It’s like the Cleveland Browns but worse. Very glad to see them wearing their usual set, even if it isn’t as good without silver pants.

    I don’t disagree the uniform is plain and simple (I wouldn’t call it boring, but I can understand those who do). I even said as much in my earlier post proclaiming they’d be wearing throwbacks tomorrow. And no, they haven’t always worn throwbacks for their big Thanksgiving game, but since they brought them back as part of their new uni set, the least they could do is wear them on Thanksgiving. Even if they’re not a great uni, they still have a big number of fans who expect to see them on the field every Turkey Day.

    The difference between the throwbacks and mono blue set is that at least the silver pants offset the all blue look and bring out the jersey much better. If they didn’t wear the Thanksgiving unis at least where the regular blue on silver look like they did back in the 2010s when they didn’t wear the Thanksgiving uniforms again until 2017.

    I’ve been rooting against them every week because of this stupid shit. Hasn’t worked yet, but maybe I’d have better luck if my pants were exactly the same color as my shirt?

    So disappointing. As a Bears fan, I would love to see them break the streak so maybe all this mono-stupidness can come to an end.

    You know what I’ll root for the Bears tomorrow to come in there with a huge upset, probably the biggest of the season and let the Lions know this uniform isn’t good luck like they think it is. I’m so glad the Bears never broke from tradition over the years.

    I prefer the Lions wear their traditional blue jerseys and silver pants that have blue and white striping. A greater problem when it comes to the Lions’ uniforms is the dim lighting at Ford Field. This was an issue at the Silverdome too. It makes the colors on all jerseys look very dull and grimy. The Monolulu blue look would be a little more pleasing with brighter, warmer lighting.

    I really don’t like their throwbacks at all so I don’t mind. I do wish they’d mix and match combos tho besides mono. Give me white over silver/blue. Blue over silver or even white. I don’t care. Just change it up.

    Yeah, I don’t have a huge problem with them not wearing the throwbacks even though I do love them. It’s more about them not wearing the traditional combo even outside of Thanksgiving for their main home look. Mono blue looks so bad and they wear it way too much similar to the Saints. It’s not like the Lions don’t have a better look with the blue on silver to run with just like with the Saints in their black on gold. If the Lions wore the regular blue on silver uniforms, I wouldn’t even had a problem with them not wearing Thanksgiving throwbacks.

    Sigh.
    Here’s hoping the Lions stick to their tradition of never wearing any of their uniforms in a Super Bowl.

    I’ve gotten to the point now, where just based off the uniforms alone. I don’t ever want to see the Lions go to a Super Bowl wearing these mono uniforms. If the Lions aren’t going to go traditional then they don’t need to ever reach a Super Bowl. I think there’s rules too because I remember the 49ers wanted to wear their throwbacks in 2019 and couldn’t wear them and the Rams wore their throwbacks in 2018 despite winning in all white in the NFC Title Game. The Lions simply can never win a SB in mono blue or mono white.

    The 5&1 will be EASY this week and is basically already decided.

    The 5 (in no particular order):
    LV at KC
    PIT at CIN
    SF at BUF
    MIA at GB
    IND at NE

    The 1:
    Probably SEA at NYJ (they’re going mono-black)

    Bears/Lions was a contender for the 5 but is totally out now. Sad times indeed!

    The current team’s impulse to go with either all whites or all blues is really one of the only things I don’t like about this dynamic, winning new culture we have in Detroit.

    To me they just kinda look like color-rush uniforms. I liked when they’d break things up
    with silver or blue pants, and loved the once-a-year throwbacks for Thanksgiving. The superstition the team has is amusing to me as a fan but I’m sure it’s a real thing in the locker room. Go Lions!

    Lord I pray the lions get smashed by the birds in the nfc championship and return to irreverence next year due to heretical uniform choices.

    In the name of the father, son and Holy Spirit amen

    On the one hand, I’ve been of the opinion that the old throwbacks haven’t had much mojo in recent years, so I figured it was time to update them – either to the glittery silver-numbered jerseys of the late 70s or to the Barry Sanders era.

    On the other hand, I literally just got a Goff throwback yesterday in anticipation of this game being a throwback game, so… LOL

    My only complaint about the Monolulu Blues (I’m still not keen on “blueberries”, though I seem to be in the minority on that around here) is the lack of pants stripes. The previous set at least had stripes on the blue pants. Stripes would break up the monotony.

    Honestly, I don’t like the Lion’s throwbacks. They look plain and unfinished, with literaly no distinguishing marks.

    The Lions have thought the Monolulu Blues were good luck dating back to at least last year, and I think it started during that end of the year run the year before.

    There’s a Jared Goff mic’d up video from last year on YouTube. They were wearing the blueberries and Goff mentioned something along the lines of the new guys don’t realize how lucky these unis are.
    :Shrug:
    I don’t mind the look personally, although I liked it much better last year when the blue pants had stripes.

    I never had a problem with the mono blues until they pretty much replaced the traditional blue on silver sets. When the Lions wore this twice a season, I didn’t mind it because they also had stripes as well. Now, it’s become too much and I hate them with a passion now. I think the mono whites are even worse, though, they look like Long Johns or practice uniforms.

    BOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

    This is terrible news, it sounds like people are getting tired of the Lions being afraid to wear silver pants. It’s crazy how a pro football team with grown men on it are so scared to wear a uniform because they think it’ll cause them to lose. If you’re really that good of a football team, you should be able to win in any combo.

    It’s a shame because the Lions new uniforms are great when it’s the right combos. Now, the Thanksgiving uniforms have gotten the boot because they’re so scared to wear silver pants of any kind. This will lead me to not taking the Lions seriously no matter how much they win because they’re too superstitious. I’ll be impressed at this point if the Lions win in any combo that’s not mono, then I’ll believe they’re a really good football.

    It’s ridiculous because blue on silver has always been their best look and one of the better looks in all of football. Imagine Ohio State abandoning Red on Scarlett Gray for an all red uniforms. Even, Michigan who had success in all blue never abandoned blue on maize yellow and those are kids who typically like the mono crap, but they’ve stayed true to tradition.

    This is really super embarrassing as I grew up loving the Barry Sanders in the blue on silver or white on silver. We never had to worry about the Thanksgiving uniform for the Lions back in the 90s. Even in the Stafford era in the 2010s we never had to worry about an ugly all blue uniform being worn for Thanksgiving.

    I’m getting so sick of this with the Lions and I blame Dan Campbell for bringing in white pants from the Saints and hideous all black home uniforms and the players of this era for being this superstitious. It’s simple at this point they need to lose in these soon and I hope the Bears play one of their best games and pull off the upset tomorrow. The mono whites, neither uniform is good luck. I just witnessed them losing the NFC Title Game in the mono whites last season and for a while the mono blues were bad luck for the first few years of the last uniform set until they finally won in them in 2022 for the first time.

    Thank you to all the other traditional teams who never sold out their traditional combos to win games like the Packers, Vikings, Bears, Cowboys, Steelers, Raiders, Chiefs, and the list goes on. This reminds me a little bit of the Seahawks in the 2000s who abandoned their amazing Kingdome era uni combos, but they eventually went back to better combos with the new uniform set in 2012 and won the Super Bowl in white on blue in 2013. Maybe this will happen for the Lions too and everything circles back for them.

    Although silver pants would be better; this is a good decision. The throw back uniform with modern protective wear and trendy cleats played indoors with artificial lighting and gaudy turf is an optical disaster.

    They really should’ve just wore the regular blue on silver combo then, but Thanksgiving throwbacks are still way better than mono blues and it’s not even close, so this was a bad decision.

    We’re stuck with this till whoever the dope is at Nike that keeps rolling this same crap out for any team that wants a new uni retires

    Also to note, they lost last Thanksgiving wearing their throwbacks, so it’s definitely a superstitious reason. And what’s the point of bringing back the classic 90s look if you’re aren’t’ going to wear the silver pants?

    I’m all in.
    Do what you gotta do as their shitty years were made out to reflect how shitty the Lions franchise was and now all of a sudden people are getting picky on how they cosmetically look?
    Haven’t heard anything about their holiday uniforms until today now that they are a national product.

    God is good

    Lions throwbacks look like a juco football team too cheap to put a logo on the helmet

    Retire them for good; they are associated with the 3/4 of a century of lion ineptitude that seems to be over

    Actually, the throwbacks are associated with the last Lions team that won an NFL championship.

    A lot of people trying to diminish the lions by suggesting that they “need” to wear a certain uniform to win, or that it’s cowardly to lean on a uniform superstition to get themselves amped up for a good performance. Chill. Of course they don’t “need” to wear a certain uniform to win, but maybe the players like those combos and it gets them into the winning mindset to feel well dressed or to feel that they look cool. It’s equally silly for people who don’t play for the team to suggest that their enjoyment of the holiday games hinges on seeing a specific team wearing a specific uniform. Lions fans should be rooting for a win, not “any result as long as it happens in an old uniform”. On top of that, “monochrome looks awful” is certainly an opinion, but not by default a particularly well supported opinion. Saying it louder or more frequently doesn’t make it fact either. I love the debate about unis here, but geez, sometimes it’s ok to take a step back, breathe slowly, and consider that because a thing can be given a certain clever label (BFBS, monocolor, GI Joke, city connect) doesn’t mean it’s automatically bad.

    Uniform superstition is bigger than you think. I can relate to it to some point but on the other hand: if you are really a good team it should not matter what you wear. And Monolulu Blue looks horrible. So as a Giants fan I say: go Bears!

    I’m in the minority on this issue…..I HATE the plain silver helmet look for the Lions!! Although, I’m not a fan of the all-blue either! My favorite uni combo is the blue jersey/silver pants with blue stripes and the modern helmet (silver with lion logo).

    You people are pathetic lol. The uniform looks good and the players clearly like wearing them. The vitriol displayed for people who like different clothes than you is heinous.

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