National Football League

Tennessee Titans debut throwback Houston Oilers uniforms

Published Jul. 24, 2023 11:03 a.m. ET

The Tennessee Titans are going back to their Houston Oilers days for throwback uniforms this season.

The Titans announced Sunday night they will wear the uniforms the franchise wore between 1981 through 1998, the latter being their second and final year as the Tennessee Oilers after leaving Houston for a new stadium in Nashville. They will don the throwbacks for two home games.

The Columbia blue jersey, white pants and white helmet featuring an oil derrick with a red face mask was the combination worn the longest by the franchise founded in 1960 by the late Bud Adams in the AFL.

"This was an original AFL team, so there’s a rich tradition there and now people are going to see this, and they are going to be reminded of this rich history," said Surf Melendez, the Titans' vice president and executive creative director.

The uniform, created with Nike, features a nod to the Oilers coached by Bum Phillips and starring Pro Football Hall of Fame back Earl Campbell with "Luv Ya Blue" inside the neckline of the jersey. Those Oilers reached back-to-back AFC championship games, losing both to Pittsburgh.

The team will wear the throwback jerseys in two home games this season. The Titans are one of several teams to announce throwbacks this offseason after the NFL in 2022 relaxed rules dictating that players could only wear one helmet throughout the entire season, which limited uniform design flexibility.

Other teams to debut throwback jerseys over the past several weeks include the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Seattle Seahawks and New York Jets, with the Philadelphia Eagles expected to soon announce a line of throwbacks as well.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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