Giants new uniforms, explained: Why New York is introducing throwback 'Century Red' jersey alternate for 2024

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Jacob Camenker
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The Giants are one of the many NFL teams unveiling new uniforms ahead of the 2024 NFL season.

It won't be New York's primary uniforms that change. Instead, the team is breaking out a throwback jersey to celebrate its 100th season in the NFL.

The design of the throwbacks is simple. The Giants took pieces from several uniforms from their early days in the league and created a mashup.

The result? The new uniforms aren't exactly fan favorites. They have been compared with animus to the Steelers' well-known "Bumble Bee" jerseys.

Here's what to know about the Giants' "Century Red" uniforms, what they look like and how they were made.

MORE: Full Giants schedule, dates, times, tickets for 2024 season

Giants new uniforms, explained

The Giants unveiled their new "Century Red" uniforms Thursday as they prepare to celebrate their 100th NFL season. New York can wear the uniforms up to two times during the 2024 NFL season.

Below is a look at the uniform, per the Giants' official X account:

The uniforms are an amalgamation of three different uniforms from New York's history, per the team. The jersey itself is modeled after the Giants' 1933 uniforms. The pants and socks come from their 1925 uniforms, while the helmet is based on the one the team wore in 1938.

The Giants provided an image of the old helmet compared to the new one. The original was a single-strap, leatherhead-style helmet with no facemask, which differs starkly from the current headgear. The only similarity is the striped blue and red appearance of the helmet.

The throwbacks were met with strong reactions from fans, who largely disapproved. Why? Despite their homage to past New York uniforms, many felt the Giants' uniforms were too similar to some other professional sports franchises.

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Giants uniforms elicit Montreal Canadiens, Michigan football comparisons

Notably, the Giants' new threads drew comparisons to the Montreal Canadiens and Michigan Wolverines. 

The Canadiens' resemblance stemmed largely from the Giants' jerseys, which many thought looked like hockey uniforms. That prompted jokes from many across the sports media landscape on social media.

While the jersey had Canadiens vibes, the helmet looked a lot like Michigan's iconic headpiece. This is thanks to the old-school Giants helmet having red cuts interwoven with the blue helmet on their initial leather headgear.

That style of helmet was en vogue in 1938, so the Giants didn't simply steal the idea from the Wolverines. Even so, NFL fans enjoyed ribbing the Giants and implying they had copied Michigan.

The Giants' throwbacks weren't particularly well-received by fans because of these comparisons. Many believed they lacked originality despite the jerseys, helmets, pants and socks paying tribute to uniforms previously worn by the team.

Perhaps New York should have used their Bill Parcells-era Giants uniforms to honor their 100th anniversary.

But if the Giants can find success in the "Century Red" uniforms, maybe fans will change their tune as the team looks to get back on track in 2024.

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Jacob Camenker

Jacob Camenker is a senior content producer at The Sporting News.