The Detroit Lions’ new Rivalries uniforms were supposed to be a fresh reveal on Tuesday. Instead, they set off an immediate round of online side-eye.
Detroit will wear the all-white “Defend the Den” look in Week 8 against the Minnesota Vikings, with Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jahmyr Gibbs fronting the rollout. The uniform brings together the team’s Honolulu blue with black stripes on the shoulders and pants, plus black numbers outlined in blue and “Detroit” stitched across the chest.
But plenty of fans didn’t see a new identity. They saw the Carolina Panthers.
The comparison came fast, and it came hard. One X account, The Detroit Times, pushed the joke all the way to calling the Lions the “Detroit Panthers” after the reveal.
The account wrote, “The Lions stealing the Panthers jerseys is actually crazy. It’s nearly identical. pic.twitter.com/ccsKjs8pSM”
Another account, Honolulu Blues, also jumped in on the look, criticizing the design and questioning Detroit’s approach to the new rivalry uniforms. That post said, “The Lions are never beating the “Detroit Panthers” allegations 💀 pic.twitter.com/zfYcoak1xW”
To be fair, Detroit didn’t copy Carolina down to every last detail. Still, the white base, blue accents, and black touches were close enough that the reaction was hard to miss.
The Lions will get their first real test of the uniform in early November against Minnesota. The Vikings also have a rivalry uniform and will wear theirs when they host Detroit in a primetime game later this season.
The NFL rolled out eight new rivalry uniforms this year, pairing the NFC North and AFC South with the designs. For now, Detroit has a few weeks of online debate ahead before the jerseys hit the field. Once the Lions actually wear them in a game, fans will decide whether the criticism sticks or the look lands better in motion.
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Jonathon Brooks Is Forcing A Panthers Backfield Decision Early
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The broader picture only gets more interesting with Chuba Hubbard recovering from a hamstring injury, leaving the Panthers with a clearer opportunity to sort out carries and roles around Brooks. His path back has already been a long one, and a preseason score does not settle anything on its own, but it does add weight to the conversation about how quickly Carolina wants to lean on him. The question now is how much of the backfield he can claim before the regular season even starts. [Read more 🡒]