As you’re all likely aware by now, long-time reader and contributer Brad Bierman has been periodically sharing his truly amazing jersey patch collection with us. Thus far, we’ve seen three individual MLB collections: His first collection was for the Athletics (in several of their homes), and our next edition featured Brad’s Chicago Cubs patch collection. We also were treated to his (HUGE!) San Francisco Giants collection. And finally, Brad brought us Part I of his MLB “Multiple Teams” collection.
I was actually expecting today’s piece to feature Part II of the MLB collection — but it turns out Brad also collects NFL patches, so with the NFL schedule release taking place this evening, he wanted to share the NFL collection today.
Here’s Brad, and enjoy!
by Brad Bierman
With the NFL maximizing its popularity by moving the composite schedule release to an annually televised event a couple of weeks after the draft, tonight the league will unveil the entire 2025 schedule.
In the spirit of a little NFL patch news from the Buffalo Bills yesterday that Phil detailed, and today with the schedule release, Volume V of my patch collection switches from MLB to NFL and 10 patches worn by multiple teams since 1969.
First, I want to give a shoutout to the five co-founders of the utterly fantastic website, The Gridiron Uniform Database, which I use extensively to track patches worn by teams, and try to match up with my collection.
I am also happy to have made one contribution to GUD connecting with Uni Watch collaborator and co-founder Tim Brulia several years back. It concerned the special darker blue (hot weather) jerseys the Detroit Lions wore only once in 1964, against the Rams in the L.A. Memorial Coliseum in Week 2 of the season.
I really liked the photo Jimmy Corcoran submitted for yesterday’s installment of Guess the Game from the Uniform, a 1969 tilt at Franklin Field between the Eagles and Cowboys, showcasing the NFL 50th Anniversary patch on each team’s jersey.
Leading to…a description of each patch in this volume:
1969
This is an authentic 50th Anniversary patch removed from an unknown jersey, with an essentially permanent slight bend from being stitched onto fabric. A great use of the iconic NFL shield logo. Some teams wore the patch on the jersey shoulder, others on the jersey sleeve, usually depending on TV numbers.
This is an authentic 75th Season patch, and there is a clue on the patch that confirms its authenticity. Each on-field patch was stamped with the surname “HAY” in the thick part of the bottom of the “7”. Ralph Hay was a Canton, Ohio automotive dealer credited with organizing the American Professional Football Association in 1920, which became the NFL. He was the owner of the Canton Bulldogs featuring a player named Jim Thorpe.
While individual teams began wearing memorial patches in the 1970s and commemorative patches in earnest beginning in the 1980s, there was a long gap for multiple-team patches (not including the Super Bowl) until 2005 (Mexico City game between the Cardinals and 49ers). Two years later the NFL London Games kicked off the International Series at Wembley Stadium, and the Dolphins and Giants each wore this patch.
The Gene Upshaw memorial patch that each team wore the first week of the 2008 season. Upshaw was the Executive Director of the NFL Player’s Association for 25 years following a 16-year Hall of Fame playing career with the Raiders (wearing No. 63). Upshaw died suddenly of pancreatic cancer August 28, 2008, and just over two weeks later each team wore this patch for Week 1 of the season. The Raiders wore a smaller version of this patch from Week 2-end of season.
The eight original AFL teams celebrated their 50th season by wearing throwback uniforms for select games against each other that included this commemorative patch of the AFL logo. For other games seven of the eight teams (Titans/Oilers did not) wore individual 50 season patches.
All but six teams wore the Ten Year Anniversary Memorial Ribbon of the September 11 terrorist attacks for games played between September 8-12, 2011, with most games occurring on 9/11. The ribbon patch was worn on the left chest of the jersey. (In case you’re wondering, the six teams who didn’t: Broncos, Packers, Dolphins, Patriots, Saints and Raiders.)
To celebrate the 50th year of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the aforementioned Ralph Hay’s hometown of Canton, each team wore this commemorative patch in Week 14 of the season for games played between December 6-10, 2012.
With great iconic patches for its 50th and 75th season celebrations, I really felt let down by the NFL’s choice to mark 100 seasons, opting for a non-embroidered, plastic miniature shield logo worn in place of the normal NFL shield on the V-neck of the jersey. All teams wore the 100 logo except the Bears, who celebrated their 100th season with a custom chest patch.
NFL marketing evolves each season and the league has now turned holiday games into larger events, if you will, including the Thanksgiving Day games made famous by coach turned broadcaster John Madden. Over a 20 year career with CBS and Fox, Madden’s unique style and panache also evolved to handing out his signature Turkey Leg MVP award, and highlighting large post-game Thanksgiving meals. The NFL decided to honor Madden beginning with the three Thanksgiving Day games played in ’23, with all six teams that played that day wearing this John Madden patch. The patches returned on Thanksgiving this past season as well.
The NFL went from Thanksgiving Day to Christmas Day this past season with the four teams that played December 25, 2024 (Week 17), the Chiefs, Steelers, Ravens and Texans, all wearing the Candy Cane patch.
Hope you enjoyed the NFL patch detour, back to MLB in the next installment.
Readers, what say you?
The 75th season patch was a great design. Probably my favorite “anniversary” patch ever.
Greg you’re right, it was really a 75th season patch, not anniversary. Like the colors & design as well, and the “Hay” mark is unique to a patch.
Thanks again for sharing your collection! Some nice originals you have.
Wonderful detour! I love that 50 patch and I do have a Lions throwback with the 75 logo on it, will check for the HAY right now (it will not be on it I guess). Indeed, it is not in the logo as it is a Mitchell & Ness replica…again, wonderful to read!
Ingmar, the “HAY” might be on there depending when you got the jersey. Last fall, M&N promoted the fact that they add that mark to this particular patch for authenticity sake. Copied below is the M&N Instagram post from Sept. 2024:
mitchellandness
“Authentic Throwbacks unveiled for the 30th Anniversary of the 75th @NFL season…
If you look closely, you can see that ‘HAY’ was embroidered into each 75h anniversary patch. This was done to pay homage to Ralph Hay, who was the owner of the Canton Bulldogs, one of the early NFL teams. He was instrumental in bringing teams and owners together to create a more organized and structured professional football league.
In 1920, he organized a meeting of representatives from several professional football teams in his Hupmobile showroom in Canton.
The meeting led to the establishment of the American Professional Football Association, which would later become the NFL. HIs showroom is often referred to as the birthplace of the NFL.
Just like the originals, we embroider the ‘HAY’ into every 1994 authentic jersey we make.”
The same 4 teams that played on Christmas Day in 2024 also played in Saturday games the previous week (really just 4 days earlier), and also wore the candy cane patches in those games.
Joe, thank you for that clarification.