For decades, helmets were plain, functional gear. That changed in 1948 with , a halfback for the Los Angeles Rams who also happened to be an art student.
Today’s helmets are vastly different, featuring , 3D-printed custom liners, and internal radio headsets for coaches to talk to quarterbacks. The Evolution of Football Helmets nfl helmet
: Gehrke painted yellow Ram horns on his blue leather helmet as a joke, but his coach and owner loved it so much they had him paint the entire team's gear by hand. For decades, helmets were plain, functional gear
: These horns were the first team logos in professional football. When games were broadcast on black-and-white television, the yellow horns didn't show up well, leading the team to temporarily switch them to white for better visibility. Modern Safety & Oddities The Evolution of Football Helmets : Gehrke painted
The story begins with , a Navy football player whose doctor warned him that another hit to the head could lead to "instant insanity" or death. Determined to play in the 1893 Army-Navy game, Reeves visited a local shoemaker in Annapolis and commissioned a moleskin leather hat with earflaps. While primitive, it was the first documented use of head protection in football history. The Birth of the Iconic Look (1948)
