Lions

1994, 2001-02 plain silver, blue facemask helmet not pictured

Leather Helmets: 1930-48

1949-60

Between 1949 and 1960, the Lions wore four styles of helmets at various times (not including changes to the facemask). Riddell did not manufacture helmets for these styles, although custom pocket pros do exist. Photos of two custom helmets are below.

  • 1949-52: Silver helmet, leather facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1949, 1953: Honolulu blue helmet, leather facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1950-53: Dark blue helmet, leather facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1953: Gold helmet, leather facemask, white stripe
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1954: Gold helmet, lucite facemask, white stripe
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1954: Dark blue helmet, lucite facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1954: Silver helmet, lucite facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1955-56, 2017-20 throwback: Silver helmet, grey facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1955-60: Dark blue helmet, grey facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1955-56: Gold helmet, grey facemask, white stripe
    • No factory pocket helmet
Dark blue helmet not pictured

1961-67

This helmet has a plain blue lion, two blue stripes, and a grey facemask. In the Throwback Series 1 and Throwback 2-bar sets.

The 1968-70 Lions helmet included a white stripe along with the blue ones. That was the only change. This style is in the pocket pro Throwback Series 2 and Throwback NFC 1969 2-bar sets.

1968–70

1971-82 and 1983-2002

The only change made to the 1970-82 Lions helmet was a white border around the lion decal. No pocket pro was manufactured for this style. The helmet in the photo below is a custom.

A blue facemask was added in 1983. Otherwise, the helmet stayed the same. This style is available in the traditional sets.

2003-08

Three changes were made to this helmet: a black facemask, a black outline around the white outline of the plain blue lion, and a thin black outline around the stripes. This helmet is in the revolution and traditional styles.

2009-16

This helmet is the same as the 2003-08 style, with one exception. The lion decal was updated to a more modern look. It’s in the revolution and speed styles.

2017-present

In 2017, the Lions replaced the white-black border around the lion decal with a white-blue border. The facemask color was changed from black to silver. Finally, the stripes were changed from black-blue-white to just blue stripes. This helmet is available in the speed style.

The Lions also wore plain silver helmets at various times since 1994.

Pocket Helmet Checklist

  • 1949-52: Silver helmet, leather facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1949, 1953: Honolulu blue helmet, leather facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1950-53: Dark blue helmet, leather facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1953: Gold helmet, leather facemask, white stripe
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1954: Gold helmet, lucite facemask, white stripe
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1954: Dark blue helmet, lucite facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1954: Silver helmet, lucite facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1955-56, 2017-20 throwback: Silver helmet, grey facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1955-60: Dark blue helmet, grey facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1955-56: Gold helmet, grey facemask, white stripe
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1961-67: Silver helmet, plain blue Lion, blue-silver-blue stripes, grey facemask
  • 1968-70: Silver helmet, plain blue Lion, blue-white-blue stripes, grey facemask
  • 1971-82: Silver helmet, blue Lion with white outline, blue-white-blue stripes, grey facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 1983-2002: Silver helmet, blue Lion with white outline, blue-white-blue stripes, blue facemask
  • 1994, 2001-02 (alternate): Plain silver helmet, no stripes, blue facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 2003-04, 2008, 2010 (alternate): Silver helmet, no stripes, black facemask
    • No factory pocket helmet
  • 2003-08: Silver helmet, blue Lion with white/black outline, blue-black-white-black-blue stripes, black facemask
  • 2009-16: Silver helmet, modern blue Lion with white/black outline, blue-black-white-black-blue stripes, black facemask,
  • 2017-present: Silver helmet, modern blue Lion with white/blue outline, blue-silver-blue-silver-blue stripes, grey facemask

Detroit Lions Leather Helmets
These pocket helmets were not officially made by Riddell. They only exist as custom helmets.

Sources

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