Ranking the best and worst NFL rivalry uniforms of 2026, from Vikings’ all-purple look to Bears' traditional set image
For the second consecutive year, eight NFL teams have unveiled new "rivalry" looks ahead of a fresh season.
In 2025, the AFC East and NFC West squads unveiled their "Rivalry" collection uniforms — the looks were created specifically for divisional matchups, featuring a four-year rollout between the 32 teams, with two divisions per year.
This year, the AFC South and NFC North will be showcasing their new threads.
Here's a ranking of the eight new NFL "rivalry" uniforms ahead of the 2026 season.
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Ranking NFL rivalry uniforms for 2026
1. Vikings
It hasn't been often that the Vikings have gone with an all-purple look, but when they get it right, it's among their best uniforms. One of the last all-purple uniforms in Minnesota was the "Color Rush" jersey, which was a bit too vibrant. This time around, there's a brilliant blend of an all-purple alternate with touches of gold.
The Vikings' new jerseys feature plenty of nice nods to vikings themselves, including a nordic knot pattern on the sleeves and "Skol" inscribed in Rune characters on the helmets.
It all comes together to create a look that isn't just visually appealing, but also uniquely reflects the team name .
2. Bears
The Bears look their best when they're honoring the tradition and simplicity of their franchise's uniforms from the past. That was clearly the goal here, and these "Rivalry" looks are simple yet effective thanks to the use of bright orange.
The orange helmets are the perfect final touch, complementing the jersey numbers and pants.
Chicago also honored its identity with parts of the look, including striped socks and "Monsters of the Midway" stitched inside the collars of the jerseys.
3. Titans
The Titans honored the "Music City," Nashville, with their new uniforms. And for a team that's synonymous with the color blue, what's essentially an all-blue look works well here.
Tennessee will be rocking the "Music City" lettering on the front of these jerseys, a perfect touch while aiming to "represent the sound and soul of Nashville." It's not hard to get excited about Cam Ward launching a touchdown pass with this look.
4. Texans
The Texans deserve some credit for going bold with the all-white jerseys, featuring very little red and blue and almost no darker colors for their "Rivalry" look. The unique "H" logo on the helmet looks amazing, as do the other touches like the "chrome and candy paint finishing."
What knocks these back a few spots, however, are two elements: One, they're hard to distinguish from some past Titans uniforms. And two, the Texans have long established themselves as a darker-color-uniform team. This is a major change; they're not bad, but might be a bit too different than other team looks.
5. Packers
Like the Bears, the Packers' best uniforms always look simple and honor their history. For the most part, Green Bay's "Rivalry" look does just that, mixing a darker green with a bright yellow and cream helmet.
The classic look makes it a solid job done by the Packers, but the color of green is fairly different than the typical one used by the franchise, almost looking gray. Without the Packers logo on the helmet, it might be a bit hard to tell that this isn't a college football uniform.
6. Lions
These are fine, at best. There's nothing terribly special about the black-and-blue on white look for the Lions, but they were probably better off going for a traditional feel — like the Packers and Bears — versus a newer-age theme.
The "Honolulu blue" feels too bright to be a Lions uniform. These look far too much like something the Panthers would wear, but they're not terrible.
7. Colts
Did anybody ask for gray Colts uniforms? These just do not go with the past looks of the franchise in any way, and the gray-blue combination isn't working well.
The helmets save this one from ranking last, with the horseshoe logo looking clean. Otherwise, Indianapolis should've highlighted its typical blue-and-white better.
8. Jaguars
The Jaguars went with teal helmets, yet teal isn't featured much elsewhere. And the pants feature a jaguar-inspired print, which is black-on-black. Neither of those elements work here.
While the font is clean and there are some special touches, the teal helmet doesn't look at good as anticipated, and the jaguar print takes the team name a bit too literally.
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What are NFL 'Rivalries' uniforms?
Last spring, the NFL and Nike announced the launch of "Rivalries," a collection of uniforms designed as "a new and exciting uniform and fan gear program that will give athletes and fans an opportunity to connect like never before."
The NFL Rivalries uniforms were intended to be inspired by the team's local community. Participating teams will wear the uniforms during divisional rivalry games.
Nike and the NFL began with eight participating teams in 2026, starting with the four teams in the AFC East and the NFC West. This year, the AFC South and NFC North teams' new looks were unveiled.
2025: AFC East (Bills, Dolphins, Jets and Patriots) and NFC West (49ers, Cardinals, Rams and Seahawks)
2026: AFC South (Colts, Jaguars, Texans and Titans) and NFC North (Bears, Lions, Packers and Vikings)
2027: AFC West (Broncos, Chargers, Chiefs and Raiders) and NFC East (Commanders, Cowboys, Eagles and Giants)
2028: AFC North (Bengals, Browns, Ravens and Steelers) and NFC South (Buccaneers, Falcons, Panthers and Saints)
NFL Rivalries uniform schedule 2026
The eight new NFL Rivalries uniforms will slowly debut throughout the 2026 season, with the Colts showcasing theirs first in Week 3 against the Texans.
The Bears will be the final team to debut their Rivalries uniforms, as they will not wear them until Week 16.
Team Uniform Debut Week Date Game
Colts 3 Sept. 27 vs. Texans
Packers 5 Oct. 11 vs. Bears
Lions 8 Nov. 1 vs. Vikings
Jaguars 8 Nov. 1 vs. Colts
Titans 10 Nov. 15 vs. Jaguars
Texans 11 Nov. 19 vs. Colts
Vikings 15 Dec. 20 vs. Lions
Bears 16 Dec. 25 vs. Packers