Ravens fans give mixed reviews on new ‘Purple Rising’ helmet
After months of speculation and waiting, Tuesday marked the reveal of the Ravens’ new “Purple Rising” alternate helmet. The third helmet design in team history features a metallic purple shell, a gold face mask and the team’s alternate front-facing bird logo — first introduced in 1999 — outlined in gold.
The team announced that it will wear the helmets for one game this season paired with the all-purple uniform that features gold numbers outlined in white.
It will be the first major change to the franchise’s uniform since it unveiled purple pants with a white-and-black stripe in 2018. The Ravens debuted an all-purple uniform in 2016 as part of the NFL’s “Color Rush” and infamously wore mustard gold pants for one game in 2015 to celebrate their 20th anniversary season.
Leaguewide, several teams have introduced alternate helmets since the NFL eliminated its “one-shell rule.” In 2022, the league allowed teams to wear a second alternate helmet. Beginning in 2025, teams will be allowed to wear a third.
While reactions to the Ravens’ new helmets have been largely positive from the players, with wide receiver Zay Flowers and tight end Mark Andrews sharing their approval in a video posted by the team, fan reactions have been mixed.
While some are eager to see the team introduce something new, others plead for the Ravens to keep the uniforms “classy and simple.”
“We don’t need all the bells and whistles, our focus needs to be on winning ball games,” Dustin Patrick from Frederick said. “How many uniforms and helmets do you see Kansas City wear?”
Other fans chimed in with their thoughts on the new helmets and what they would like to see from the team’s uniforms in the future.
Editor’s note: Some answers have been lightly edited for clarity.
What is your reaction to the team’s new “Purple Rising” helmet?
“I love it, I absolutely love it. The purple with the gold is a nice combo. I do like the older Ravens head logo.” — April R Smith, Owings Mills
“I like the purple with the gold touch instead of black, it brings it out more and brightens it up.” — Desiré Ash, Baltimore
“I like the old-school logo, but I’m not feeling all the gold. We need some black in there, the Raven is a dark bird.” — Tao Moore, Reisterstown
“Oh I don’t like those at all. That bird is not the Ravens bird, they need to stick to the old helmet.” — April Giordano, Middle River
How does this new all-purple look compare with your favorite uniform combination(s)?
“I don’t like it, all I see is purple and gold. We are not the [Minnesota] Vikings. Our best uniform is when we are blacked out.” — Jaelyn Heyliger, Reisterstown
“We’ve seen the ‘Color Rush’ before, but the purple helmets will really make it pop and stand out.” — Marquise Wells, Baltimore
“I love the all-purple. Honestly, I like all the uniform combinations. Just keep away from those ugly mustard pants.” — Smith
What game should the Ravens debut the “Purple Rising” helmets?
“We can put them on against the [Las Vegas] Raiders. It’s the first home game and they [stink], so we can break out the new unis and get the ‘W’ all in the same day.” — Moore
“We need to get them out of the way and wear them early and against a team we can beat. At least we can get a win in them ugly things.” — Patrick
“It’s only right we debut them against Cincinnati [Nov. 7]. It’s a prime-time game and [the Bengals] can wear their all-white ones with the white helmet. I think it’d look good under the lights for that Lamar vs. Joe Burrow showdown.” — Wells
“The first night game of the season [Sept. 29 vs. Buffalo Bills] would be perfect, get a lot of eyes on them during a big televised game.” — Smith
What would you like to see the Ravens do with their uniforms in the future?
“Change the logo, go back to the old bird. The current one looks a little cartoony to me.” — Heyliger
“Add some flavor, maybe some gray uniforms or something new with the pants. I know how we run our organization, but it’s OK to be different and outside the box sometimes.” — Wells
“A gray uniform might work, but don’t change the bird. I think we do a really nice job with all our current uniforms.” — Giordano
“Well first we should wear these helmets more than just one time. All that time, money and hype and you wearing them for only one game? That doesn’t make any sense to me.” — Ash
“The thing that frustrates me about the Ravens is that the best jersey they have is a practice jersey. Bring out that black jersey with the purple number outlined in gold.” — Patrick
“Our uniforms aren’t bad at all. As long as we keep the mustard pants gone forever.” — Smith