Titans/Oilers

1960-63, 1964-65

The 1960-63 columbia blue helmet had a plain white oil derrick, plain white stripe, and grey facemask. This helmet is in AFL 50th anniversary, Throwback series 1, and Throwback 2-bar sets.

In 1964, red and white stripes were added. Riddell did not manufacture a pocket pro helmet in this style. The photo below shows a custom pocket pro helmet. I bought a 1960-63 helmet and added the red and white stripes on my own.

1966 – A helmet the Oilers likely never wore

The 1966 Oilers helmet is a matter of some dispute. There is agreement the Oilers transitioned to a silver helmet with red-white-blue-white-red stripes in 1966. The dispute has to do with the oil derrick:

1. A few sites reference a continuation of the blue oil derrick with a white outline. Chris Creamer’s Sportslogo.net references this helmet. Mike Stanhope’s helmet history site claims the 1966 Oilers helmet had a “Navy derrick with white outline.”
2. Others reference a blue derrick with white and red outline. This includes The Helmet Project, Gridiron Uniform Database, Bill’s Sports Map, and official Tennessee Titans sites. A KC Chiefs AFL Helmet history site also references this helmet.

I cannot find reliable evidence the Oilers 1966 helmet displayed the first logo (blue oil derrick with plain white outline). The Mike Stanhope site provides a somewhat blurred photo. If you closely examine the photo, however, you can see a thin red outline.

Based on other’s historical research and a lack of evidence, I am going to conclude the Oilers never wore a blue derrick with plain white outline. The photos below display a custom version of this style; a style the Oilers almost certainly never actually wore.

Photos from Worthpoint

1966-71

In 1966, the Oilers transitioned to a new silver helmet. This helmet is in the Throwback 1969 AFC 2-bar set. Even though by 1969, the Oilers had removed the white stripes. The traditional style helmet in the photo below is a custom helmet.

In 1968, the Oilers removed the white part of the stripe. So, the stripes were red-blue-red.

However, the factory helmet displays a big gap between the red and blue stripes. The stripes were actually continuous, or touching each other. More information about that is on my blog. This style is in the Throwback Series 2 set.

1966-67: Back row. The traditional style helmet in the photo is a custom; I added the white stripes.
1968-71: Front row; factory error

1972-74

In 1972, the Oilers returned to the columbia blue helet. The stripping pattern and oil derrick are different colors.

Riddell did not manufacture a pocket pro helmet in this style. The helmet below is a custom pocket pro. I ordered the helmet on eBay. The craftsmanship is really good.

1975-80 and 1981-98

In 1975, the Oilers switched to the white helmet and kept this style until the team transitioned to the Tennessee Titans style.

In 1981, the facemask changed from grey to red.

For two years (1997 and 1998), the team was known as the Tennessee Oilers. This pocket pro is in the traditional set. The TN Oilers helmet has a tiny oil derrick imposed over a TN flag in the corner (see below).

1990-2017 and 2018-present

The Tennessee Titans white pocket pro is in the Traditional, Revolution, chrome, and Speed sets. The black Titans helmet (introduced in 2018) is in the Speed set.

Oilers Throwbacks

The Titans have worn Oilers throwbacks over the years, including the 1960-63 columbia blue helmet in 2009 and 1981-96 Oilers helmet with the red facemask starting in 2023. The latter throwback was manufactured in 2024 as part of the limited edition series. The photo of that helmet is below compared to the traditional helmet Riddell manufactured in the 90s.

Titans / Oilers Custom Helmets

Checklist

Last update: 8/20/23

Years	Color	Facemask	Logo	Stripes	Pocket Helmet
1960-63 1994, 2009 throwback	Columbia blue	Grey	Plain white derrick	White	Throwback AFL 50th Anniversary / Throwback Series 1 Throwback 2-bar
1964-65	Columbia blue	Grey	Plain white derrick	White/red stripes	None
1966-67	Silver	Grey	Blue derrick with white and red outline	Red-white-blue-white-red	Throwback AFC 1969 2-bar
1968-71	Silver	Grey	Blue derrick with white and red outline	Red-blue-red The factory pocket helmet has red-silver-blue-silver-red stripes	Throwback Series 2
1972-74	Columbia blue	Grey	Red derrick with red outline	White/red stripes	None
1975-80	White	Grey	Blue derrick with red outline	Red-white-blue-white-red	None
1981-96 2023 throwback	White	Red	Blue derrick with red outline	Red-white-blue-white-red	Traditional Speed – limited edition series
1997-98	White	Red	Blue derrick with red outline	Red-white-blue-white-red	Traditional
1999-2017	White	Navy blue	T logo	Tapered	Traditional Revolution Speed Chrome
2018-present	Black	Grey	T logo	Tapered	Speed

References

• Gridiron Uniform Database, Oilers/Titans
• Helmet History.com, Oilers/Titans