Ravens reveal new alternate 'Purple Rising' helmet (2024)

For the first time in their nearly 30-year history, the Baltimore Ravens will wear a purple helmet.

Baltimore revealed its alternate "Purple Rising" helmet on Tuesday, becoming the latest NFL team to add a second option to their uniform closet thanks to the league's relaxation of headgear-related uniform rules.

To call the helmet aesthetically pleasing is an understatement. Baltimore's selection of a metallic satin finish on the purple shell makes the helmet pop, and the inclusion of the team's talon striping -- a staple of their uniforms since their inception -- in gold, not purple, maintains the team's aesthetic tradition. With no better time than now to introduce a gold facemask, the Ravens jumped at the opportunity, creating a regal helmet and embracing the third team color in prominent fashion.

Oh the deeeeetailsssssss 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/xcbjo3Ka6x

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) June 18, 2024

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The new helmet deserved a new logo on each side, for which Baltimore selected its secondary mark, the forward-facing Raven logo. The logic was simple: If you're going to introduce an alternate helmet, why not use it to bring a less prominent logo to the forefront?

"The logo will probably be a popular topic of the helmet," Ravens senior VP of marketing Brad Downs said during an appearance on the team's "The Lounge Podcast." "While we don't use this logo a lot, the eyes are very iconic to the gameday experience. Our players run out for intros under the eyes. We felt like it was time to give this logo a little shine, if you will.

"Our fans love the shield. I know that will be one of the popular comments, 'Why not the shield?' But with the existing uniform, we've got the shield right on the sleeve. The shield's already prominently there. This one made a lot of sense to bring to the forefront on the helmet."

The new helmet not only provides the Ravens with another option, but also brings new life to their Color Rush uniform, which debuted in 2016 but didn't take much risk, simply swapping out white numbers for gold numerals and adding purple pants with a matching white-gold-white triple stripe down each side. With this new helmet included, this uniform finally feels complete.

Appropriately, the Ravens will wear their new helmet with the existing Color Rush uniforms for one game in 2024, Downs said.

"We pay attention to all of that feedback from the fans, to really try to land on something they're going to love," Downs said. "I've been waiting for this day for a long time. We know our fans have clamored for it. They just like new stuff. But our uniforms have a nice traditional feel and we've had a lot success in them. We don't want to be that team that changes all the time. We like the tradition that we've built.

"We've thought about this for years. I think I had at least 14 options of helmets, and that doesn't even include swapping decals, locals, stripes. We narrowed it down to two, and this is the direction that we went."

From the time the Browns moved from Cleveland to Baltimore and established a new existence as the Ravens in 1996, the franchise has worn nothing but black helmets. They've changed slightly in appearance, with a logo swap to their current bird's head mark occurring in 1999, but have otherwise remained the same. The same can largely be said for their uniforms, which have seen some elements (sleeve and pants logos, plus periodic introduction of a few more options) adjusted over time, but have maintained their most dominant feature: their unique drop-shadowed numbers, which debuted in 1997.

With Tuesday's reveal, the Ravens have taken their most ambitious aesthetic step since introducing gold pants in 2015, which were only worn once before they were sent to the back of the closet. This helmet will only see the field once in 2024, but judging by the players' reaction to it -- "It's bad-ass, man," tight end Mark Andrews said -- it is safe to say they'll make another appearance in the future.

Ravens reveal new alternate 'Purple Rising' helmet (2024)

FAQs

Ravens reveal new alternate 'Purple Rising' helmet? ›

To call the helmet aesthetically pleasing is an understatement. Baltimore's selection of a metallic satin finish on the purple shell makes the helmet pop, and the inclusion of the team's talon striping -- a staple of their uniforms since their inception -- in gold, not purple, maintains the team's aesthetic tradition.

Have the Baltimore Ravens revealed their alternate helmet? ›

The Ravens have added a dazzling new helmet to their closet. The team will wear an alternate 'Purple Rising' helmet for one game next season, and the new design was revealed on Tuesday.

Do the Ravens have purple helmets? ›

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.

How to make Baltimore Ravens purple? ›

The Baltimore Ravens colors CMYK codes are (100, 100, 0, 5) for purple, (70, 50, 50, 100) for black, (0, 20, 80, 20) for metallic gold, and (10, 100, 100, 0) for red color.

Did the Baltimore Ravens change their logo? ›

1999 - Present - Current Logo

The previous logo had to be changed due to Baltimore losing the court battle against an artist. So, the team came up with a new logo which had a raven in profile. The bird is facing to the right and is purple in color with a white beak.

Will the Chiefs have an alternate helmet? ›

The league first approved a measure to allow for alternate helmets in 2021 — and this past offseason, it expanded its stance to include a third helmet design. The Kansas City Chiefs have yet to take advantage of either measure, sticking with the mirrored “KC Arrowhead” on a red helmet with a white mask.

Why did the Ravens pick purple? ›

Upon choosing the nickname that won out in a Sun naming contest, the Baltimore Ravens chose the color because it said it resembled the shine of the bird in sunlight. The color choice irritated some Minnesota Vikings fans, whose NFL team once monopolized the color purple. Several other sports teams use it, however.

Why do the Ravens have three mascots? ›

Poe's brothers

When originally unveiled, Poe was one of three costumed mascots, all raven brothers named "Edgar", "Allan", and "Poe". Because the Baltimore Ravens were named after the poem "The Raven" by Baltimore resident Edgar Allan Poe, it was natural that the team name their mascots after Poe himself.

Why is the M and O different colors Baltimore Ravens? ›

The letters "MO" in "BALTIMORE" are colored in gold paying tribute to Mo Gaba. The rest of the letters are white with a gold outline. Gaba died two years ago after numerous health battles. He was 14 years old.

Why is Baltimore called Ravens? ›

With fans playing an integral role, the selection of the nickname "Ravens" was inspired by the poetry of former Baltimore resident, Edgar Allan Poe. From a list of more than 100 possible nicknames presented by NFL Properties, club executives narrowed the list to 17.

What was the Ravens old logo? ›

Before the team's inaugural season, Balitmore-based amateur artist Frederick Bouchat proposed a logo that featured a flying "B" on a shield with wings extending from either side. One month later, the Ravens unveiled the "Flying B" logo as its symbol, featuring a gold shield with a winged purple "B" at the center.

Why did the Browns change their name to the Ravens? ›

The Ravens originated when Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell decided to relocate his historic franchise, and he reached a deal with the city of Baltimore to move his team in 1996.

Do the Ravens wear captain patches? ›

Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens do not have any year-long captains and instead name them weekly.

Do the Eagles have a new helmet? ›

The Eagles will wear a brand new black alternate helmet in 2022 while waiting for the Kelly Green helmets to be ready for the 2023 season.

What team did the Ravens replace? ›

This article details the history of the Baltimore Ravens, a professional American football team which plays in the National Football League. The Ravens were formed to fill in the void left by Baltimore's previous team, the Colts, who had controversially moved to Indianapolis.

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