Are these new Minnesota Vikings helmet designs? (Photo)

Are these possible new designs for the Minnesota Vikings helmets?

There are few brands more recognizable around the world than NFL teams and their logos. While the shield itself is synonymous with the league, individual teams and their logos are synonymous with fan bases and therefore are legit brands on their own.

So it’s a pretty big deal when a logo changes — or there’s even a slight hint of a change.

Nothing has been rumored and there seems to be no indication that the Minnesota Vikings will be adding their name to the list of teams to update their look, a new tweet from what appears to be a manufacturing facility begs to differ if even mildly.

The tweet was passed along by reliable uniform guru Phil Hecken, but don’t automatically assume that he’s giving his stamp of approval.

When we see something like this — new helmet designs specifically — we like to jump to the conclusion that they must be some sort of new mockup of a new design. That’s where I went right away, because these types of things are interesting.

A team changing their logo is like someone getting a new nose, it changes your identity even if only slightly. So when there is even the rumbling of a team possibly flirting with a new helmet design, it’s a big deal.

But let’s not read too much into this. While it’s possible that the Vikings are testing out a new logo design, this is likely something that is merely a memorabilia manufacturing thing meant for items to be sold to collectors.

Plus, the Vikings may not be the coolest team in the NFL, but they’re near the bottom of the list of teams in need of updating their classic look.