LOOK: Arizona Cardinals reveal new uniforms for 2023 NFL season

After 18 seasons in their most recent uniforms, the Arizona Cardinals will have a new look for the 2023 season. The team unveiled three new uniforms on April 20, less than a week before the start of this year’s NFL Draft. 

As you can see below, the Cardinals went for a more simplified look. Along with a more simple stripe pattern, the Cardinals have joined the recent list of teams that have elected to no longer wear numbers on their shoulders. The script “Arizona” on the team’s home jersey and the “Cardinals” font across the visiting jersey shoulder are two of the more noticeable changes from the outgoing jerseys. The added emphasis on the color silver is another noticeable difference. 

It appears that Arizona’s primary helmet did not undergo any changes. The Cardinals’ black helmet, which made its debut last year as part of the team’s color rush uniform, will remain in circulation as part of the team’s alternate uniform. 

Some of the immediate responses to the Cardinals’ new jerseys had to do with how similar they are to Ohio State’s current uniforms, especially the team’s alternate jersey when compared to the Buckeyes’ black jersey. This calls to mind when the Iowa Hawkeyes changed their uniform in the 1970s to mimic the dynastic Pittsburgh Steelers. 

Founded in 1920, the Cardinals adopted red and white as its primary colors in 1937. The team’s uniform went through several changes in the following years before settling into its long-term look in 1960. The Cardinals essentially wore a variation of the same uniform from that point up until 2005, when the team ushered in a more modern look that continued to be in circulation through the 2022 season. 

The Cardinals had a successful run in their outgoing uniforms. In 2008, the franchise advanced to the Super Bowl for the first time, where it nearly upset the favored Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII. The Cardinals made the playoffs four more times — including a trip to the NFC Championship Game in 2015 — while sporting their outgoing uniforms. 

Arizona’s roster during this time span included several prominent players, including future Hall of Famers Larry Fitzgerald and J.J. Watt, Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner, Hall of Fame running back Edgerrin James, and former Pro Bowlers Anquon Boldin, Patrick Peterson, Carson Palmer, Calais Campbell, Tyrann Mathieu, Dwight Freeney, David Johnson, Adrian Wilson and current Cardinals safety Budda Baker.