Steelers throwback uniforms should've stayed nearly a century in the past

It's a big week for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Mike Tomlin is surely asking his team to respond after a 10-day break since the upset loss to the rival Bengals, especially as their lead in the AFC North has now been made much less comfortable. On top of that, Aaron Rodgers will be facing his former team, the Green Bay Packers, in primetime for Sunday Night Football. Unfortunately, the Steelers won't be abiding by "look good, play good" mantras, as they'll be donning throwback uniforms for this matchup.

This, of course, isn't the first time that the Steelers throwback uniforms have drawn criticism. You don't have to look far to find jokes being made at the franchise's expense when they've worn the striped black and yellow throwback jerseys in years past. However, this is a new iteration of the throwbacks, and it might be the worst yet.

ESPN's Adam Schefter "showed off" the new threads on Sunday morning, and some people destined for Sunday brunches may have suddenly lost their appetites.

The jerseys themselves are simply awful. The stripes on the torso look haphazardly thrown on like a hasty Microsoft Paint production, and the block numerals then clash with the design. On top of that, the yellow helmets are just as bad, but the coup de grâce of unsightly features is the beige pants. Yes, I'm fully aware of what all of it represents, and there had to be a better way than what they came up with here to honor the 19333 Pittsburgh team.

Steelers throwback jerseys are an homage to founding team in 1933

The beige pants and the jersey stripes, in particular, are directly correlated to the first team in franchise history, which was founded in 1933. In theory, that's a cool way to pay homage to the history of the organization, but it's also just so poorly executed.

If you look back at the 1933 uniforms, the numbering was on the shoulder. That, obviously, isn't possible with the NFL rules for numbers now, but the result of trying to bring the throwback jerseys to the modern league and uniform rules is that you're now left with an awful clash, not a blend of two generations. That can be done, but it would be next to impossible with these striped uniforms.

Perhaps what stands out most to me, though, is that the matte yellow/gold helmet. The Steelers say that they draw inspiration from the 1930s and 1960s in Pittsburgh football, but man, they just look out of place with this entire aesthetic. I've actually been a fan of the yellow helmets in the past with other throwbacks, but not these throwbacks in particular.

All of this is to say, the Steelers' attempt to pay respect to the history of the franchise has ultimately resulted in a hodgepodge of features that simply don't work together. It's abstract art, not a clean throwback look that most teams strive for. And while the bumblebee uniforms of the past for Pittsburgh have been met with less than favorable criticism over the years, these absolutely take the cake.

Steelers apparently don't have to look good to play good

With all of that being out there, however, the Steelers probably couldn't care less how they look if their historic success while wearing throwback jerseys continues.

Pittsburgh has donned throwback uniforms 21 previous times in franchise history. They've gone on to accrue a 16-5 record in that span. Moreover, the Steelers have also never lost when they wear a throwback for the first time, going 4-0 in such games. They obviously are hoping to push those marks to 17 and five wins, respectively, with the matchup against the Packers.

And frankly, they need it. While this is a pseudo revenge game for Rodgers as he faces the team that drafted him and spent nearly two decades with, the Steelers simply are losing their margin for error in the early-season playoff race. Their division lead in the AFC North has shrunk to just 1.5 games, while the Bengals have seemingly found some footing behind Joe Flacco and the Ravens continue to lurk (even if Lamar Jackson won't play in Week 8).

Perhaps just as importantly, the matchup at home against Green Bay is the start of a brutal stretch for the Steelers in which they face the Packers and Colts at home before going on the road to Los Angeles to face the Chargers. It's a lofty expectation for Pittsburgh to go perfect through that gauntlet, but they need to pick up some wins, and the Pack have proven to be incredibly talented but flawed to this point. Add in the motivation of Rodgers for this game in particular, and it's a big opportunity that they have to take advantage of.

We just wish they looked a bit better while they're doing it.