Moral crossroads

A man is worth nothing without integrity. He has to wake up, look in the mirror, and feel secure knowing he will do the right thing when called upon. Yet there no shame in admitting when one’s weak. That shows strength of character. Sometimes we’re faced with an impossible situation that requires reflection, honesty, and moral courage. And I’ve arrived at such a crossroad.

Which direction will I choose? Will I maintain my commitment to the Los Angeles Chargers? Or will I once again saddle up with the Tennessee Titans?

For those who don’t know, after the trading away of AJ Brown and the termination of Mike Vrabel, I declared my hatred for Titans ownership. Naturally, I found a new home with the lesser NFL team in Los Angeles. But given the biggest story in the offseason, I’m beginning to rethink my judgment.

As we all know by now, New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel has been fuckin former Athletic journalist Dianna Russini from one end of the United States to the other for at least five years. It wouldn’t be much of a problem if it weren’t for the fact that both parties are married to other people. Of course, football fans are mostly shrugging this controversy away, feeling that this is a domestic affair not worthy of the national scrutiny it’s been receiving. And to that, I say fair enough. Nevertheless, a controversy it remains. It probably doesn’t help that the Patriots name is involved in all this, which is owned by sex pervert Robert Kraft and is coming off two decades total league dominance. So some might say Vrabel deserves this. When you rub elbows with the devil, prepare to get burned.

But perhaps wittingly or unwittingly, the Tennessee Titans have dodged a bullet. Given the alleged reputation Russini has around the league, I can’t help but think if Amy Adams Strunk knew something the rest of us didn’t. So does the Titans front office deserve some credit for terminating Vrabel when they did? Probably not. Regardless, fortune favored them in this scenario.

But mostly, I see this as a sign from Satan himself to reassess my views on the Titans. Earlier in the offseason, the team restored their Oilers-era colors which, as I noted, underwhelmed many fans including myself. Now, a couple of months later, I’m starting to change my tune. Additionally, Bob Saleh was hired as the new head coach. I hated that decision when it was announced, particularly since he flamed out with the New York Jets, but after seeing him wear the new colors, I’m beginning to see the vision. Keep in mind, New Meadowlands is an Indian burial ground, so maybe we shouldn’t judge Saleh’s actions there too harshly.

So I’m back with the Titans. What do I do about the Chargers?”

“You can be a fan of two teams, dumbass,” you might wonder.

But that’s where you’re wrong. Unlike Vrabel, I have integrity. To be a fan of a team, one must experience both the highs AND the lows. You can’t jump ship when the going gets tough (even though the Titans and Chargers both perennially suck, so the pain persists no matter which direction you choose). So here I am, at the moral crossroads, with no resolution in sight.

And moreover again…

The NFL team in Nashville is having an identity crisis. This problem should be enough to keep us all awake at night. Thankfully I have a very simple solution. As you are aware by now, I have advocated for restoration of the Oilers name. I don’t do so because I prefer the old name, but because Amy Adams Strunk has painted herself into a corner and this is the only way out. Now, she’s already brought back the Oilers uniforms. So it’s time to go the extra mile.

But I have another suggestion, and this suggestion might not be as popular but nonetheless necessary. An emphasis with the new uniforms is its Nashville identity so they subtly incorporated “guitar strings” onto the helmet. Yet again, as I have complained so many times before, this is a half measure. So this is where I may kick up a hornet’s nest: the Nashville football team shouldn’t be called the “Tennessee Oilers.” They should be the Nashville Oilers.

Now I know what you’re thinking. It doesn’t necessarily roll off the tongue. But neither did “Houston Oilers” for that matter. Additionally, this might mean dropping the iconic “stars of Tennessee” from the team emblem. Whatever my detractors might think, I believe that this is a necessary measure to emphasize exclusivity; this is a team for Nashvillians and Nashvillians ONLY. And let’s just be honest, Nashville is where the cool kids of Tennessee hang out. The fair weather fans of Memphis couldn’t care less. The people of Knoxville are too busy cheering for that team of roadside construction workers. And Chattanooga might as well be in Georgia. If you want your club to be cool, you don’t make it appeal to the largest group possible. You make it exclusive. And the Oilers aren’t “Tennessee’s” team. It belongs to the cool kids of Nashville.

Judgement Day

As the internet is well aware, after the ill advised firing of Mike Vrabel by the Tennessee Titans, I renounced my fandom for NFL franchise in Nashville and proclaimed my allegiance to new titans of mediocrity in Los Angeles, the Chargers. So far, that decision has paid off in spades. Yet Tennessee still had one ace up its sleeve – or, in football parlance – one last Hail Mary to bring me back into the fold. And that hand was played today by the unveiling of new uniforms.

So. The final verdict?

Underwhelmed.

For the record, this is not a bad uniform. But I’ve made my opinion clear to anyone who would listen. If the Titans want to be the Oilers, then they should stop with these half-assed measures. Go FULL ass. BE the Tennessee Oilers for fuck sake.

But alas, we get this halfhearted nod. Which is fine. But if they really want to send this uniform over the edge, do a light blue alternate for the helmet 👍

Oil up!

Amy Adams Strunk has done the unthinkable and followed my advice. The Tennessee Titans are seemingly returning to their roots by restoring the Houston Oilers-era colors. While many of you might think I would chalk this up as a victory, it’s not as simple as that. This is a hallowed victory—one that I had hoped would never happen.

According to various reports, which I won’t cite here, the Titans are abandoning the “Greek mythology” themes by ditching the sword and flames and making the Tennessee stars of the state flag its main logo. I should say for the record that I never had a problem with the “Titans” theme. I didn’t have an issue with the theory. It was the execution that I took umbrage over. Since the news broke, many have come to the defense of the so-called “flaming thumbtack” and its “2000s maximalist” design. I will simply say that they’re wrong. That era of design sucked ass. But I will agree that the new logo is underwhelming. While I have stated repeatedly that I prefer simplicity with uniform design, I don’t feel that way about logo design. Had the Titans/Oilers always resided in Tennessee, then the new logo would have been perfectly serviceable. It’s clean and simple, just like the Steelers, Cowboys, and Green Bay for example. The difference is those teams have been historically good and never relocated. Simplicity works for them. It’s recognizable. It harkens back to the classical days of the NFL.

Which leads us to a big problem. It appears that the Titans wish to link its history in Houston with its history in Tennessee. But as any Tennessean will tell you, they don’t give a shit about its Houston era. And why should they? The Titans might as well be an expansion franchise. So in short, Bud Adams made a critical mistake in renaming the Oilers. At the very least, keeping the name in place might have resulted in the team retaining some fans in Texas. Now the Adams family wish to remedy that mistake nearly 30 years later? It’s too late. Houston has a new franchise now, the Texans, and they’re currently in a much better spot than the Titans. And btw, the Texans and Titans are divisional rivals. Restoring the old Oilers colors would only give the Texans added ammunition which they don’t need. So to me, this seems like a bad, BAD idea.

Additionally, something makes me SICK about seeing Cam Ward wear #1 in Oilers colors. Yes, I know that Warren Moon let him do it, but it doesn’t make it right. But if this is the path that the Titans wish to go down, then go all the way. Restore the Oilers name. I know that the “Tennessee Oilers” doesn’t make much sense, but as I’ve said time and time again: no one gives a shit.

2025 NFL uniform ranking (part I. The worst ones)

It’s crunch time.

With a book coming out, it feels like being down three points in the fourth quarter and cramming for the finals all in one. Stress has reached a boiling point. So with a lot on my plate, I need to write about something cheap and easy. And you know me. I always have an opinion about football uniforms.

It’s been a couple years since I’ve done this. So here’s my ranking for all the 2025 NFL uniforms. Unfortunately my beef with Roger Goodell is ongoing so I won’t be able to post pictures. But that’s what the internet is for folks 🤷‍♂️

32. Seattle Seahawks

I think we can all agree that this uniform has overstayed its welcome. Actually it was never welcomed to begin with. It’s just unfortunate that this was the uniform worn during the franchise’s most successful run. But with the Legion of Boom/Russell Wilson/Pete Carroll era over, it’s time to restore the throwbacks to their proper place.

31. Philadelphia Eagles

For the life of me, I will never understand the love of midnight green. It’s boring as shit. And the shading behind the numbers makes the whole thing look dated. This uniform is stuck in the late 90s/early 2000s when everyone was depressed because of 9/11. It’s been nearly a quarter of a century, Philly. Bring back the Kelly green!

30. New England Patriots

Post Tom Brady, the Patriots have made improvements. I’ll admit, they have some good alternatives. But it’s still not enough. The biggest problem is the helmet, specifically the logo on the helmet. The internet has been quite vocal lately about the superiority of Pat Patriot over the current logo and I’m inclined to agree with them. But to improve the helmet, I have a much simpler idea: ditch the grey and make it white.

29. Tennessee Titans

It’s 2025. Every year there’s at least one team that everyone agrees to collectively shit on. This year it’s the Titans. Not only are they a poorly ran organization, their uniforms kinda suck too. Complexity is out. Simplicity is in. And the Titans uniform is a bit too complex for my tastes. Simply ditch the sword theme and get rid of the grey altogether. And as much as I love the old Houston Oilers uniforms, it’s time to retire those. Those belong to the city of Houston. If they wanted to keep those then the Adams family should have never of changed the name to “Titans”. Does the name “Oiler” make any sense for Tennessee? No. But who gives a shit? So actually my advice to improve the uniform is to change the name back to “Oilers”. That might solve a lot of Tennessee’s problems.

Tennessee Oilers

I get it. I understand why Bud Adams changed it from the Oilers to the Titans. Still though, the Titans should have remained the Oilers.

“But there’s no oil in Tennessee 😭😭😭,” you say.

Who cares?

LA and Utah are hardly known for their lakes and jazz, yet that hasn’t stopped their NBA teams. I’d also like to add that the three greatest players in “Titans” history – Warren Moon, Mike Munchak, and Earl Campbell – never played a down of football in Tennessee.

Arguably, the Tennessee Titans/Houston Oilers franchise has seen their best days in Nashville (they went to a Super Bowl for instance), but forget all of that. Everyone remembers this team for one reason and reason only: those dope ass Houston Oilers uniform.

Let’s just be honest, no one likes the Titans “two tone blue.” While the solid navy blue uniforms have grown on me the past few seasons, it was always a mistake to make that the primary color over the traditional “Titans/Oilers (light) blue.”

As for the logo, it’s respectable that the Titans incorporated the the three stars found on the Tennessee state flag, but it’s still a shitty logo. And they made it worse by adding an inexplicable flame to it.

Why make this the main logo when they have much better one available?

Am I crazy to think that this one’s cooler?

Slap that on the side of the helmet, revert back to the Oilers colors, and suddenly Tennessee goes from having one of the worst uniforms to one of the best!

Everybody wants this to happen. But I suppose the Adams family wants to be respectful to the city of Houston for abandoning them. But fuck ‘em! They ended up getting another (shitty) franchise!

Plus, everyone thinks the Houston Texans are a joke anyway. Nobody likes them. So if Tennessee wants fans to start liking them again, they should flush their current uniforms down the toilet and reissue the old Oilers outfits. And if they can’t do this full time, then they should just do it twice a year when they play Houston so that they can laugh in their stupid fucking faces.