The NFL draft is taking place as scheduled in a few weeks, but it’s going to be quite different from what we’ve come to expect. We can thank the COVID-19 pandemic for that.
The event will still be televised, but participating parties, from commissioner Roger Goodell on down, will be taking part from separate remote locations.
It’s going to take some getting used to but, thankfully, there is at least one tradition that remains alive and well, even in these unprecedented times — draft day hats!
Earlier this week, New Era released the official event caps for 29 of the league’s 32 teams (those of the Las Vegas Raiders, Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming later this month).
(Note: The rankings have been updated with the April 7 release of the Buccaneers’ cap.)
The NFL draft is still set for April 23-25, but the coronavirus outbreak is forcing the league to adopt a different approach to announcing picks.
Of course, no one will get to see our favorite teams’ future stars wearing them while posing for photos with Goodell. But at least fans can wear them with pride as they watch every minute of the three-day draft (you all do that too, right?).
Speaking of traditions, no pandemic is going to stop us from ranking each of those draft day hats, from snazziest to most hideous. This year, every team’s cap is black with a large logo (“in bold, accentuated colors,” according to a New Era news release) in front and a team slogan on the side.
The result was a number of very sharp hats, along with some that are solid if not all that exciting ... and only a few disasters.
The Eagles bounce back spectacularly after landing at No. 29 in last year’s ranking. And they do so with a design that manages to be both bold and understated. The same can be said about all of the caps in the top five.
(Speaking of bouncing back spectacularly, the Panthers rebound after finishing dead last a year ago.)
The next group features teams with logos that stand out and look great against the black background. And, believe it or not, this includes the Rams and their sometimes-criticized new logo.
For some teams, the simple approach works best, including the organization with last year’s top-ranked hat, the Arizona Cardinals.
Other teams might have gone a bit overboard but still came away with nice-looking hats.
Nothing wrong with this next group. Nothing terribly exciting about it either.
Not much to be said about the next group. Just a bunch of hats with logos — chances are fans of these teams already have similar caps (albeit without the slogans on the side).
And now for the disasters ...
This could have worked but the burgundy parts of the logo blend too much into the black background.
Can see what they were going for, but yikes!
The Browns have no logo so they went with one that was retired 50 years ago. But that’s not the issue. That logo came out as an unrecognizable mess, much like the Bears’. And the Browns were docked for lack of effort with the slogan, which is simply the team name.
Get our high school sports newsletter
Prep Rally is devoted to the SoCal high school sports experience, bringing you scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
