Riddell will drop the 2024 Jets alternate. I am excited for this one as the Jets have so many alternates and throwbacks to choose from:

• 1993 alternate
• 1994 alternate
• 2016-18 alternate. This helmet is the same as the primary. It had a white facemask instead of a green facemask.
• 2015, 2017-18 white “color rush” alternate with the brighter, metallic green
• 2022-23 black alternate
• 2024 throwback to 1965-77

The facemask on the pocket helmet appears to be a darker green than the brighter green the Jets actually wore. Otherwise, it looks pretty sharp.

My next post will cover the new Rivalries Uniform releases in 2025. Thanks to fellow collector Micheal Dole for letting me know!

Limited Edition Checklist Update

Throwback / Alternate

• Throwbacks: 11
• Alternates: 12

NFC: 16

• East: 6 – Commanders (1/1), Cowboys (2/3), Eagles (1/1), Giants (2/2)
• North: 4 – Bears (1/2), Packers (1/2), Lions (1/1), Vikings (1/2)
• South: 4 – Buccaneers (1/1), Falcons (1/1), Panthers (1/1), Saints (1/2)
• West: 2 – 49ers (1/1), Cardinals (0/1), Rams (0/0), Seahawks (1/1)

AFC: 7

• East: 3 – Bills (0/0), Dolphins (1/1), Jets (1/2), Patriots (1/1)
• North: 1 – Bengals (0/0), Browns (0/1), Ravens (1/1), Steelers (0/1)
• South: 2 – Colts (0/2), Jaguars (0/2), Texans (1/2), Titans (1/1)
• West: 1 – Broncos (1/2), Chargers (0/1), Chiefs (0/0), Raiders (0/0)

Release & Manufacture Dates

2024 Limited Edition Speed Series (1 of 2000): release date – team and details – manufacture date

1. 2024/03/07: Dallas Cowboys 2022-present alternate – 2023/11
2. 2024/03/28: Seattle Seahawks 1983-2011 throwback – 2023/11
3. 2024/04/18: Chicago Bears 2022-present alternate – 2023/11
4. 2024/05/09: Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1976-96 throwback – 2023/11
5. 2024/05/30: Carolina Panthers 2022-present alternate – 2023/11
6. 2024/06/20: Atlanta Falcons 1966-69 throwback – 2023/11
7. 2024/08/01: Green Bay Packers 2024-present alternate – 2024/05
8. 2024/08/15: Detroit Lions 2024-present alternate – 2024/05
9. 2024/09/05: Baltimore Ravens 2024-present alternate – 2024/05
10. 2024/09/12: New York Giants 2024 throwback throwback – 2024/05
11. 2024/09/26: Denver Broncos 1993-96 throwback – 2024/05
12. 2024/10/17: New England Patriots 1982-90 throwback – 2024/05
13. 2024/11/07: New Orleans Saints 2022-present alternate – 2024/05
14. 2024/11/18: Miami Dolphins 1966-69 throwback – 2024/05
15. 2024/12/19: Houston Oilers 1981-96 throwback – 2024/05

2025 Limited Edition Speed Series (1 of 525): release date – team and details – manufacture date

1. 2025/01/23: Philadelphia Eagles 2022-present alternate – 2024/05
2. 2025/02/06: Minnesota Vikings 2024-present alternate – 2024/09
3. 2025/02/20: New York Giants throwback (GIANTS logo) – 2024/09
4. 2025/03/06: San Francisco 49ers throwback – 2024/09
5. 2025/03/20: Houston Texans 2024-present alternate (H logo) – 2024/09
6. 2025/04/10: Washington Commanders 2022-present alternate — likely 2024/09
7. 2025/04/17: Dallas Cowboys white throwback – likely 2024/09
8. 2025/05/01: New York Jets 2024-present alternate – likely 2024/09

A 2nd Cowboys drop and the 6th team from the NFC east. Dallas originally wore the helmet in 1960-63. And again as a throwback in 2004-12. Dallas picked the helmet back up again in 2022.

This is a throwback of sorts to the 1960-63 helmet. I say ‘of sorts’ because there are slight differences in the 1960-63 helmet and the modern throwback helmet.

The 1960-63 helmet is a lighter blue. At least the ones Riddell made are. The modern throwback is a darker blue. The photo below shows the differences.

So, this recent release will be the fourth version Riddell has released of this style, including both shades of blue:

1. Two-bar – lighter blue
2. Traditional – lighter blue
3. Traditional – darker blue
4. Speed – the speed helmet appears to be a darker blue

The two-bar and lighter blue traditional were in the two-bar and throwback series 1 sets. I beliee the darker blue helmet was in the 4-piece Cowboys and possibly six-team NFC set.

Limited Edition Counts

Throwback / Alternate

• Throwbacks: 11
• Alternates: 11

NFC: 16

• East: 6 – Commanders (1/1), Cowboys (2/3), Eagles (1/1), Giants (2/2)
• North: 4 – Bears (1/2), Packers (1/2), Lions (1/1), Vikings (1/2)
• South: 4 – Buccaneers (1/1), Falcons (1/1), Panthers (1/1), Saints (1/2)
• West: 2 – 49ers (1/1), Cardinals (0/1), Rams (0/0), Seahawks (1/1)

AFC: 6

• East: 2 – Bills (0/0), Dolphins (1/1), Jets (0/2), Patriots (1/1)
• North: 1 – Bengals (0/0), Browns (0/1), Ravens (1/1), Steelers (0/1)
• South: 2 – Colts (0/2), Jaguars (0/2), Texans (1/2), Titans (1/1)
• West: 1 – Broncos (1/2), Chargers (0/1), Chiefs (0/0), Raiders (0/0)

Release & Manufacture Dates

1. 2024/03/07: Dallas Cowboys alternate – 2023/11
2. 2024/03/28: Seattle Seahawks throwback – 2023/11
3. 2024/04/18: Chicago Bears alternate – 2023/11
4. 2024/05/09: Tampa Bay Buccaneers throwback – 2023/11
5. 2024/05/30: Carolina Panthers alternate – 2023/11
6. 2024/06/20: Atlanta Falcons throwback – 2023/11
7. 2024/08/01: Green Bay Packers alternate – 2024/05
8. 2024/08/15: Detroit Lions alternate – 2024/05
9. 2024/09/05: Baltimore Ravens alternate – 2024/05
10. 2024/09/12: New York Giants throwback – 2024/05
11. 2024/09/26: Denver Broncos throwback – 2024/05
12. 2024/10/17: New England Patriots throwback – 2024/05
13. 2024/11/07: New Orleans Saints alternate – 2024/05
14. 2024/11/18: Miami Dolphins throwback – 2024/05
15. 2024/12/19: Houston Oilers throwback – 2024/05
16. 2025/01/23: Philadelphia Eagles alternate – 2024/05
17. 2025/02/06: Minnesota Vikings alternate – 2024/09
18. 2025/02/20: New York Giants throwback (GIANTS logo) – 2024/09
19. 2025/03/06: San Francisco 49ers throwback – 2024/09
20. 2025/03/20: Houston Texans alternate (H logo) – 2024/09
21. 2025/04/10: Washington Commanders alternate — likely 2024/09
22. 2024/04/17: Dallas Cowboys throwback – likely 2024/09

I am excited for this drop for a few reasons. First, there are a lot of Washington alternate/quasi-throwback helmets out there from 1994, 2012, 2013, 2019 and 2020. This helmet fills in a gap. Second, I am glad they went with a black alternate with tricky logos to customize. I hope they don’t make a Browns alternate because it’s so easy for collectors to make on their own. I would prioritize a lot of other helmets first.

By my count, there’s eight alternates left from 2024 alone. And 10 throwbacks from 2024. This is a total of 18. And then there’s new alternates and throwbacks in 2025.

I do have one minor quibble. I have never been a fan of the “00.” In 2020, Riddell placed “20” on the 2020 Commanders helmet. They could have gone with “22” here. Or even a “24.” This has happened before. Riddell didn’t place numbers at all on the 1960 Patriots, 1966 Chargers, 1961-73 Chargers (traditional style), or the 2020 Chargers. Others place the year, including the 1960 Broncos and the 1960 Browns.

For those counting, that’s 10 throwbacks and 11 alternates. The NFC east has the most with five, followed by the NFC north and NFC south (4 each). The NFC has 15 and the AFC 6. I would think the next AFC team would be the Jets or Colts. We will see…

Limited Edition Counts

Throwback / Alternate

• Throwbacks: 10
• Alternates: 11

NFC: 15

• East: 5 – Commanders (1/1), Cowboys (1/3), Eagles (1/1), Giants (2/2)
• North: 4 – Bears (1/2), Packers (1/2), Lions (1/1), Vikings (1/2)
• South: 4 – Buccaneers (1/1), Falcons (1/1), Panthers (1/1), Saints (1/2)
• West: 2 – 49ers (1/1), Cardinals (0/1), Rams (0/0), Seahawks (1/1)

AFC: 6

• East: 2 – Bills (0/0), Dolphins (1/1), Jets (0/2), Patriots (1/1)
• North: 1 – Bengals (0/0), Browns (0/1), Ravens (1/1), Steelers (0/1)
• South: 2 – Colts (0/2), Jaguars (0/2), Texans (1/2), Titans (1/1)
• West: 1 – Broncos (1/2), Chargers (0/1), Chiefs (0/0), Raiders (0/0)

Release & Manufacture Dates

1. 2024/03/07: Dallas Cowboys alternate – 2023/11
2. 2024/03/28: Seattle Seahawks throwback – 2023/11
3. 2024/04/18: Chicago Bears alternate – 2023/11
4. 2024/05/09: Tampa Bay Buccaneers throwback – 2023/11
5. 2024/05/30: Carolina Panthers alternate – 2023/11
6. 2024/06/20: Atlanta Falcons throwback – 2023/11
7. 2024/08/01: Green Bay Packers alternate – 2024/05
8. 2024/08/15: Detroit Lions alternate – 2024/05
9. 2024/09/05: Baltimore Ravens alternate – 2024/05
10. 2024/09/12: New York Giants throwback – 2024/05
11. 2024/09/26: Denver Broncos throwback – 2024/05
12. 2024/10/17: New England Patriots throwback – 2024/05
13. 2024/11/07: New Orleans Saints alternate – 2024/05
14. 2024/11/18: Miami Dolphins throwback – 2024/05
15. 2024/12/19: Houston Oilers throwback – 2024/05
16. 2025/01/23: Philadelphia Eagles alternate – 2024/05
17. 2025/02/06: Minnesota Vikings alternate – 2024/09
18. 2025/02/20: New York Giants throwback (GIANTS logo) – 2024/09
19. 2025/03/06: San Francisco 49ers throwback – 2024/09
20. 2025/03/20: Houston Texans alternate (H logo) – 2024/09
21. 2025/04/10: Washington Commanders alternate — likely 2024/09

Well, one learns something new every day 🙂

When I purchased the new Vikings white alternate, I noticed the Vikings had changed helmet colors over the years. It hasn’t always been a regular purple. In fact, there have been four different shades (in addition to four facemask colors and two different horns, not including the white alternate).

I also discovered a revolution style helmet I didn’t know existed. It is for the 2002-05 Vikings helmet. Considering Riddell started the Revolution helmets around 2005, this one must have just snuck in.

Here is a photo of all the factory Vikings pocket helmets. The Vikings are one of the rare teams with a factory helmet for all the years and styles. There are no gaps. The revised checklist is available on the Vikings pocket helmet page.

In the Super Bowl era (59 years) 12 of the 32 franchises have never won a Super Bowl. Here are my rankings.

In tier 1, I have the Vikings alone. The Vikings are a no brainer for the top spot. They have the 4th best regular season record in history and have more playoff appearances than the 49ers, Chiefs or Patriots. The 1998 team is probably the 2nd best team to not win a Super Bowl. As good as the Vikings consistently are, it’s remarkable they haven’t won a championship.

In tier 2, I have the Bills and Bengals. I was torn between the Bills and Bengals for 2nd place. The Bills get the edge for a few good runs and one more Super Bowl appearance.

In tier 3, the Titans/Oilers, Chargers and Falcons are usually competitive and have been to the super bowl. They only need to get over the hump.

The next tier includes the Panthers, Texans, and Jaguars.

The last three – Browns, Lions and Cardinals – have a long history of not winning in the regular season or playoffs. So they are in tier 5.

The worst franchise to win a Super Bowl is easily the Jets, followed by the Saints, Bears, and Bucs.

1. Vikings.
2. Bills.
3. Bengals.
4. Titans / Oilers.
5. Falcons.
6. Chargers.
7. Panthers.
8. Texans.
9. Jaguars.
10. Browns.
11. Lions.
12. Cardinals.