1994 NFL Jerseys

[icollectDCsports]

I seem to recall that in the late '90s or so, the Redskins sold a bunch of team issued (but not game worn) jerseys from 1994 with the NFL 75th Anniversary patch, complete with player names on the back. From time to time, I see 1994 Redskins jerseys for sale, with no apparent wear, and I wonder if they came from this crop of team issued jerseys. Also, I've seen a number of '94 jerseys for other teams up for sale in recent years, many also with no obvious wear. I wonder, and ask if anyone here knows, whether for some reason NFL teams ordered a bunch of extra jerseys that year (maybe to sell as commemoratives because of the patch) that have later been sold on the secondary market as game worn.

[Samets]

I'll shed some light on two teams... The Bears and the Packers...

Let's start with the Packers; In 1998 Grey Flannel Auctions contracted with the Packers to provide 36 custom jerseys for an auction. The team took 36 unused jerseys from their stock and provided them to GF. As far as I know, all 36 were Favre jerseys mostly the home throwbacks but there were some road jerseys in there as well... The jerseys were not meant to deceive anyone and came with a letter from Packers equipment manager Red Batty explaining their unusual history. I'm not sure if any others were released by the team.

As far as the Bears, there are 2 version of the 1994 throwback jersey. They are virtually identical as far as the tagging but the number on the right front is slightly different in size.

Here's an example of a Butler jersey.
1st pic is of the actual game worn jersey
2nd is the properly tagged but slightly off sized number
The other two pics are retail authentics for comparison...

[Samets]

Here's the picture...

[gwh11]

In their November 1999 auction, Grey Flannel offered a lot of 10 team-issued, unused Packers '94 throwback jerseys that were lettered & numbered as Favre jerseys, 5 home and 5 road.

In November 2011, Heritage Auctions offered 3 unused, team-issued '94 Packers home throwback jerseys (LeRoy Butler, Corey Harris, George Teague).

-Guy

[G1X]

I seem to recall that in the late '90s or so, the Redskins sold a bunch of team issued (but not game worn) jerseys from 1994 with the NFL 75th Anniversary patch, complete with player names on the back. From time to time, I see 1994 Redskins jerseys for sale, with no apparent wear, and I wonder if they came from this crop of team issued jerseys. Also, I've seen a number of '94 jerseys for other teams up for sale in recent years, many also with no obvious wear. I wonder, and ask if anyone here knows, whether for some reason NFL teams ordered a bunch of extra jerseys that year (maybe to sell as commemoratives because of the patch) that have later been sold on the secondary market as game worn.

To my knowledge, I am not aware of any team ordering extra jerseys for the 1994 season, and I cannot say that I have seen more '94 jerseys than any other particular season.

With regards to Washington, perhaps you are seeing more of their jerseys in the hobby as they released a number of their 1994 jerseys in their initial Team Tent Sale about a dozen years ago. I attended the sale and noted that there were two jerseys of a number of players. As with any team's inventory, some showed nice game use and some did not. For example, I recall seeing two white jerseys of #22-Frank Wycheck (he was with Washington for two seasons before becoming an All-Pro with Tennessee). One showed signs of use, the other did not.

I collect Falcons jerseys, and I have not noticed a particularly large number of their 1994 jerseys in the marketplace. Wayne Otto made a bulk buy of 1994 Falcons jerseys years ago, but it was not a huge number of jerseys. Interesting to note is that both Washington and Atlanta "recycled" a number of their 1993 tagged jerseys for use in 1994, so this might be a reason you are seeing more jerseys from '94, but that's assuming that the teams ordered the typical two sets and then released all (both '93 recycled and the '94 sets) into the hobby at some point. It makes more sense for Atlanta as they had a slight style change in 1995 (added a black collar trim) and could not "recycle" the '94 jerseys for the 1995 season. I have no clue if Washington recycled their '94 jerseys for the 1995 season (in which case, the patch would have been removed).

I made a bulk buy of Lions jerseys in 1999 that included jerseys from the 1994 season. Most of the ones with patches were recycled Wilson jerseys from earlier seasons that they wore for about the first half of 1994 before their Apex jerseys were put into use. Interestingly, most of the Apex jerseys were re-used in 1995 with the 75th patch removed and the jerseys re-tagged with Reebok tail tags and Reebok sleeve logos (Apex went defunct, so the Lions went with Reebok in 1995).

As for game use on older jerseys, they don't always reflect the wear and abuse that modern jerseys show as they were made differently and worn somewhat differently (not as tight, etc.). If you are observing photos on ebay, auctions, etc., it can be difficult to see wear on older jerseys as it does not always show up very well in the photographs. While linemen and some other positions might show repairs and wear, the usage on jerseys of backup players, some receivers, defensive backs, and QBs can be difficult to discern without actually seeing the jersey in person. Wash wear, curling tags, slight discoloration on white jerseys, spandex scuffing, and shoulder pad scuffing on the inside of the yoke are some of the things to look for on older jerseys that might appear to be "mint" at first glance.

Just my observations - others might have completely different experiences with 1994 jerseys.

Happy Holidays!

Mark Hayne
Gridiron Exchange
gixc@verizon.net

(Asking Santa Claus for WFL jerseys for Christmas. Can anyone help Santa out with my request? I will trade you nice portraits of dead Presidents for your WFL gear.)