The Philadelphia Eagles embrace the “blackout” with new alternate helmet

Welp, it’s official, the Philadelphia Eagles are returning to Kelly Green… in 2023.

I know, talk about a wet blanket announcement, but hey, when you wait 26 years to secure the return of the grassy hue on a new Nike uniform, what’s one more year?

And yet, with the NFL finally allowing teams to add a second color to their helmet rotation, the Eagles were at an impasse. Would they go with Kelly Green on the dome even if they couldn’t match it on their uniforms as a sort of preview with their white uniforms as a sort of reverse 2017 Los Angeles Rams? Or would they instead go back to a white helmet with green wings a la the Harold Carmichael era?

Neither actually; no, the Philadelphia Eagles instead leaned into their fan-favorite black jerseys and delivered onto fans a new definition of the “blackout.”

The Philadelphia Eagles are back in even more black.

In 2003, the Philadelphia Eagles added a black jersey, and for the most part, the fans really liked it. Sure, it wasn’t Kelly Green- what is? – but it was a fun change of pace, a new jersey to purchase, and a darn snazzy look paired up with midnight green helmets and pants.

Since then, the Eagles have increasingly embraced having “blackout” games, usually against the New York Giants, where the black jersey is paired up with black pants for a look that would make the Power Rangers proud. They’ve also, at the request of Jalen Hurts, tried out white tops with black pants in 2021 to very good results against the Denver Broncos, but up to this point, that had been the extent of the experimentation with the hue.

Well, guess what? A whole new world of possibilities just opened up for the Birds in black, as they now have a black helmet to their credit too.

Dang, that is sick!

Now granted, the Philadelphia Eagles aren’t alone in their all-black efforts; about half of the teams in the league have opted to go with all-black as their alternate helmet, and more teams will surely pursue it in the future, too. But hey, with Kelly Green off the table until next year, and a white helmet presenting challenges – what color would the wings be? – this is the obvious decision from the start, and the right one to boot. A+ stuff.