The Best Logos in the NFL

By Dan Holmes Freelance Writer Updated: 12 February 2024

Dan Holmes Freelance Writer

Dan Holmes, a content creator and sports betting enthusiast, brings over a decade of experience to Betting.US. His extensive writing background spans from the internet to prestigious roles at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Dan’s articles, featured on numerous websites, cover various sports, from bowling to disc golf.

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Best Logos in the NFL

List of the 10 Best NFL Logos
Las Vegas Raiders
Houston Texans
Buffalo Bills
Pittsburgh Steelers
Dallas Cowboys
Philadelphia Eagles
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
New York Jets
New Orleans Saints
Baltimore Ravens
The 3 Worst NFL Logos
Jacksonville Jaguars
Cincinnati Bengals
Tennessee Titans
References

Here it is – NFL logos ranked, the top ten logos and the bottom three. When coming up with such rankings, it’s not easy to avoid fan bias. Just because you root for a team doesn’t mean you love their logo, and your least favorite team may have a great logo.

Luckily, the coolest NFL logos and helmets have no bearing on the NFL sports betting sites, which price odds for weekly games in pro football. The criteria for our rankings of the best NFL logos are (1) clever use of graphics to create a logo that represents the team and city, (2) attractiveness, and (3) iconic stature.

1. Las Vegas Raiders

The city doesn’t matter. The team name doesn’t matter. Winning and losing doesn’t even really matter – the Raiders logo is iconic and attractive. It’s come to represent more than just football and a team: the helmeted pirate-like “Raiders Man” logo means rebellion, toughness, and the outsider. That’s because it stems from legendary team owner Al Davis ^[1], a maverick who delighted in his role as a rule-bender and rule-breaker.

The Raiders black-and-silver logo earns points also for showing a man in a helmet: too many NFL logos fail to evoke the sport of football. What, for example, does the Los Angeles Rams bland logo have to do with professional football?

The Raiders have one of the best NFL logos of all time, and arguably one of the best logos in all of sports. When you wear a sweatshirt or a cap with this logo, you command respect, and maybe even a free drink at your local public house.

2. Houston Texans

The most clever logo in the league, the Texans manage to pay homage to the cattle industry, which is so identifiable to the Lone Star State. Speaking of lone star, this best NFL logo has a single star, and it’s “steer head” shape is curved to represent the shape of the state. If that weren’t enough, the Texans NFL logo is red, white, and blue, representing the three colors of the Texas state flag.

3. Buffalo Bills

Something we love in an NFL logo is a sense of movement and action. The Bills’ buffalo logo has that – the beast is moving to the right in obvious fury and rampaging determination. The bold red line adds color and movement, and of course the team has had loads of success with this logo on its NFL helmet.

Did you know that there never were buffalo in North America? The animal that numbered in the millions on this continent more than a century ago was the bison ^[2]. Europeans who were familiar with buffalo elsewhere mistakenly confused the two. But, why quibble? Buffalo Bills sound much better than Bison Bills.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers

Ranking at or near the top in iconic status is the logo of the Steelers, who have won six Super Bowls ^[3]. The 1970s Steelers are often ranked as the greatest team of all time, having won four titles in six seasons behind several Hall of Fame players, including quarterback Terry Bradshaw and defensive standouts Mean Joe Greene and Jack Lambert.

The Steelers logo has the three famous “hypocycloids” (one each in yellow, red, and blue) that signify the three elements needed to make steel – coal, iron, and steel scrap. No other NFL’s best logo so closely attaches itself to the city where the team plays.

Here’s a bonus if you’re a Steelers fan – each of your three main professional teams (Steelers, Pittsburgh Pirates of MLB, and Penguins of the NHL) have black and yellow as their primary colors. That makes dressing for a sporting event rather simple.

5. Dallas Cowboys

To be honest, the Cowboys logo is almost boringly simple. A single blue star outlined in light silver and blue. The uniforms are iconic, the giant star at midfield of their stadium is famous. However, the logo relies almost exclusively on history. The team has won five Super Bowls in three different periods of dynastic dominance, but it’s been a while since the “Boys” have even played in a Super Bowl. What’s wrong down there in Dallas, Jerry Jones?

6. Philadelphia Eagles

Much like the Bills, the Eagles have a fierce logo that makes you think of the helmet-rattling, shoulder-pad busting action of the NFL. This is one of the few teams to rely heavily on green in their logo, and it works, especially with the silver as an accent color. The current Eagles head logo was updated in the 1990s, and has remained unchanged for nearly three decades. Why? Because it’s one of the best NFL logos of all time.

7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Who doesn’t love a pirate? There’s something about the swashbuckling renegades that is so appealing. The Buccaneers have a fantastic pirate flag logo, with the skull and cross bones, and a football. We also love that the Bucs are bold enough to use deep red and orange together. They have one of the most eye-popping uniform ensembles in any sport. Any ranking of NFL logos has to include Tampa Bay.

8. New York Jets

Sure, this logo (or wordmark technically) is simple, but the Jets green is unique, and we love the inclusion of a football. Believe it or not, Tampa Bay and the Jets are the only NFL teams with a football in their logo. The J-E-T-S don’t win, but they entertain, and with this logo, they look pretty good. We prefer this to the hyper-modern, busy logos of newer teams like the Jacksonville Jaguars, Carolina Panthers, and the Washington Football Team.

9. New Orleans Saints

The Saints get the highest mark for paying respect to the roots of their city and state. Louisiana was a territory of France before it was American ^[4]. The city of New Orleans is most definitely one of the more European cities in the U.S.

The Saints’ logo is a striking gold and black “le fleur de lis,” which is French for lily flower, and was important to France’s stature as a world power in the 18th and 19th centuries. The history of the lily flower is integral to Louisiana and New Orleans ^[5], and it has always had a place with their football team. Great NFL logo, no doubt.

10. Baltimore Ravens

You have to love one of the best NFL logos paying tribute to a famous literary giant. Baltimore was home to Edgar Allen Poe, the noted 19th century poet, author, and misanthrope. Poe’s most famous work is his poem “The Raven,” and the NFL team in the city adopted that nickname when they debuted in the NFL in 1996.

Baltimore is also the only NFL team to use purple in its logo. Only the Ravens in football, the Lakers, Kings, and Hornets in the NBA, and the Colorado Rockies in MLB, use purple as a primary or secondary color, among the four major pro leagues in the United States and Canada.

The 3 Worst NFL Logos

Jacksonville Jaguars
Cincinnati Bengals
Tennessee Titans

1. Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars logo is a pretty scary cat with sharp teeth. Not a bad start, except it has no connection to the region or anything in real life. There haven’t been jaguars in what is now the United States since prehistoric times. They may as well be called the Jacksonville Unicorns or Jacksonville Neanderthals. The team’s color scheme is also bad, and don’t even get us started on the uniforms. Blech.

2. Cincinnati Bengals

Apparently, this was the idea the Bengals had – take the first letter of their nickname, color it like what they think a tiger looks like (a Bengal), and make it as cartoonish as possible. The “logo” appears like it was designed by a 5-year-old. This is a dreadful logo, helped by a silly uniform and a name that has nothing at all to do with the Queen City.

3. Tennessee Titans

If you can tell us what the Titan’s logo is, we’d appreciate it. There’s a “T” that’s somewhat shaped like a dagger, is that supposed to be scary? And why is the logo circle on fire? This is a mess, with way too much happening. We’re not big fans of the color scheme either. Since there are oil fields in Tennessee, how about imply going back to “Oilers?” please.

What do you think of our list? Let us know on social media – share this article and/or comment. Don’t like our list? Think we’re fools for our rankings of the top NFL logos? Make your own list and let us know where we went haywire. But, if the Jacksonville Jaguars’ logo is on your list, you’re wrong.

References

Al Davies, Wikipedia, Retrieved January 16, 2024
American Bison, Wikipedia, Retrieved January 16, 2024
Varley, Teresa, (February 1, 2022), Making history with a Super Bowl win, Pittsburgh Steelers Official Website, Retrieved January 16, 2024
Louisiana as a French Colony, Library of Congress, Retrieved January 16, 2024
Keen, Laureen, The History of the New Orleans Saints Logo, The Hatchwise, Retrieved January 16, 2024