The 2025 NFL season is finally here! In the spirit of the new season, we’ve decided to take a look back at Houston’s rich football history by ranking every Houston Texans and Houston Oilers uniform from worst to best.
The uniforms range from the Oilers’ AFL debut in 1960 all the way to their final threads prior to their move to Tennessee after the 1996 season. As for the Texans, we’ll also take a look at every uniform since their 2002 expansion through the present day.
I see what the Texans were going for in trying to establish a unique identity with their Color Rush redesign in 2024, however it falls flat for me. I’m not a huge fan of the “H” logo, especially with it replacing the classic Texans logo on the helmet. I’d be curious to see how this would’ve turned out had they opted to go with the lighter blue as the dominant color. It’s just another Nike jersey/uniform dud in a long history of them since the apparel brand has taken over MLB, NBA and NFL uniform designs.
15. 1961-63 Oilers Home/Away
Nothing against the second uniform design for the AFL’s Oilers, but dropping the red from the jersey was a mistake. Otherwise, the uniform is a product of limited jersey design capabilities in the 1960s.
14. 1960 Oilers Home/Away
https://t.co/etVxFVguKx After 10 seasons with the Chicago Bears, George Blanda called it quits after the 1958 season only to join the Houston Oilers and the AFL in 1960. He went on to play another 15 years as one of the AFL's top quarterbacks and kickers. pic.twitter.com/kIjsJM3D8I
The color scheme is slightly better than its successor, but again its a rather simple design from a simpler time. The numbers remind me of those New York Knicks jerseys from the early ’80s.
13. 2012-23 Texans Alternate
The red alternates are fine, but I feel like Nike’s version doesn’t hold up to the Reebok predecessor.
12. 2017-22 Texans Color Rush
Color Rush uniforms can be a really hit or miss, depending on a team’s colorway. The Texans’ uniforms were decent,
10. 1964-65 Oilers Home/Away
The Oilers decided to throw a bit more color on the uniforms, adding a red strip to the blue helmets, but removed the red from the away jerseys, replacing it with blue, to be more of a flip from the home threads.
9. 2003-11 Texans Alternate
Not too far off from their successors, but the Reebok alternates had a better look to them, in my own personal opinion.
8. 2024-Present Texans Home/Away
The Texans’ 2024 redesign saw the entire look of the team shift to a bit more of an aggressive look, but I’d stop short of saying the home and away uniforms are an improvement over the predecessors. The home uniform looks like an alteration of the 2017-22 Color Rush uniforms. The aways, however, look better than the former home uniforms.
7. 1966-71 Oilers Home/Away
Those silver helmets are sick! While I’m not a major fan of the gray bottoms, the silver Oilers helmets help cement the former Houston franchise as one of the best when it comes to sharp-looking head protection. The reintroduction of red accents to the jersey was a great choice, something the Oilers would continue for the rest of their time in H-Town.
6. 2024-Present Texans Alternate
The best-looking uniforms from the 2024 Texans redesign goes to the alternates. The shiny red helmets are a nice touch, with a cool horn design coming out of either side of the face mask. The red bottoms work as well, essentially making this uniform a much better “color rush” than their actual Color Rush threads.
5. 2012-23 Texans Home/Away
Compared to the Reebok originals, I like the thicker collar on the Nike uniforms when compared to their predecessors. However, the overall look of the jersey appears cheaper. Despite retaining the classic Texans look, I had to drop them a spot.
4. 2002-11 Texans Home/Away
Now that they’re gone, I think I’ve come to appreciate the overall style of the Texans uniforms from 2002 through 2023, however the Reebok originals get the edge over the Nike successors. Maybe it’s because Andre Johnson made them so cool; these uniforms weren’t so bad in hindsight, especially considering the high bar left behind by the Oilers.
3. 1972-74 Oilers Home/Away
I really dig the relatively short-lived blue helmets with the white logo uniforms of the early ’70s. Oilers uniforms only got better from here.
2. 1975-79 Oilers Home/Away
These are about as good as it gets – just about. The introduction of the white helmet gave the Oilers arguably the greatest and most iconic uniform in NFL history.
1. 1980-96 Oilers Home/Away
The greatest uniform in Houston AFL/NFL football history belongs to the 1980-96 Houston Oilers. These uniforms boast one of the greatest colorways in pro sports history, and everything just works so well. The change from 1979 to 1980 boils down to a change with the stripes on the helmet, which I think is enough to separate the two. It’s a shame the colorway is held hostage by the Tennessee Titans, who honestly have no business holding onto Houston’s colors and the rights to the Oilers trademark. Here’s to hoping that some day our hometown Texans can celebrate the Oilers’ legacy.
