Titans/Oilers

Row 1: 2018-present
Row 2: 1999-2017
Row 3: 1975-80 (Houston), 1981-96 (Houston), and 1997-98 (Tennessee)
Row 4: 1966-70, 1971, 1972-74
Row 5: 1960-63, 1964-65
Image from Bills Sports Maps

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.

Custom pocket pro
Custom pocket pro

Photos from Worthpoint

1966-70, 1971

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

In 1971, the Oilers removed the white part of the stripe and replaced it with silver (the same color of the helmet). This style is in the Throwback Series 2 set.

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).

Oilers traditional style helmets. Note tiny oil derrick above the “R” on the helmet on the left.

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.

Titans / Oilers Custom Helmets

Titans/Oilers Checklist

References

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