The Cleveland Browns will wear white helmets for the first time since 1951 when they take the field for tonight’s Monday Night Football matchup at the Pittsburgh Steelers (8:15 p.m. ET on ABC).
The Browns originally wore plain white leather helmets from their inception in 1946 until they introduced a solid orange leather option in 1950 to comply with NFL rules that required teams to wear helmets that contrasted with the white football used during night games.
Cleveland had a white helmet option for one more season before moving to orange plastic lids on a full-time basis in 1952, albeit with a white stripe down the center. Gray facemarks were added in 1954 and brown jerseys numbers were placed on the sides in 1957.
The Browns initially paired the 1957 helmet design with their 1946 throwback uniforms as part of their 75th anniversary celebration in 2021, as they simply swapped the decals and facemarks on their standard orange helmets to adhere to the NFL’s one-helmet rule.
Cleveland did not wear throwback uniforms last season after the league scrapped that rule, but they’ll return tonight and will be paired with the white helmets, though they feature a few modern touches with the Browns’ current stripes and a brown facemask.
This marks the first of three appearances for the white helmet and 1946 throwback uniforms this season, as Cleveland will also wear the design at home against the San Francisco 49ers on Oct. 15 and New York Jets on Dec. 28.
The Browns will not wear their Jim Brown memorial patch on the left shoulder of these jerseys, however, as they feature the 1946 football logo instead. That patch will only be worn on their home brown and road white jerseys.
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