A Look at the NFL’s Most Fashionable Season

Layla Ilchi
·4 min read
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This season, the NFL proved it is a major player in the fashion world thanks to many viral style moments among players like Travis Kelce, Stefon Diggs, Joe Burrow and others.

The league’s “NFL Tunnel” — like the NBA’s long-standing version — gave both rookie and veteran players a platform to experiment with their style and show their personalities off the field, which garnered newfound interest among current and new football fans.

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There was more attention than ever this season on NFL style, according to the NFL’s fashion content strategist, Kyle Smith, and senior manager of player social marketing, McKenzie Fox.

“Now more than ever, we have so many engaged fans,” Fox said. “They’re not only focused on what our players are doing on the field, but also off. That’s also the connected tissue — it’s fashion during their arrival outfits and when they get to the games. Especially with the rise of social media, now players are creating their own personal brands, so they’re celebrities and influencers in their own right and they’re taking advantage of that when they arrive on game day.”

Part of Fox and Smith’s role is to highlight the players’ tunnel looks and pre-game outfits on the NFL Style Instagram account. Week-to-week, Smith explained he knew which players to keep an eye on, naming Kelce, Diggs, Ray-Ray McCloud III, Darren Waller and others as athletes whose looks regularly go viral.

Among the most fashionable players, Kelce made many headlines both for his eye-catching style and his romantic relationship with Taylor Swift.

Kelce became known for his luxury streetwear looks, mixing pieces from design houses like Louis Vuitton, Bottega Veneta, Marni and Amiri with advanced contemporary labels like The Elder Statesman and Collina Strada.

The Chiefs tight end was also responsible for putting smaller designers on the map, such as upcycled vintage brand J. Logan Home, who experienced a surge in business after Kelce wore several of his dress shirts over the last few months.

Travis Kelce in KidSuper denim matching set
Travis Kelce

One of Kelce’s most viral looks this season was his sky blue denim set from KidSuper’s fall 2023 collection worn in September.

“In previous years, it was expected that you would wear a suit or there were more restrictions around what a player was expected to wear,” Smith said about the NFL Tunnel. “Now, I think we’ve opened up some of those ideas and regulations. I know some other leagues have regulations, but I feel like for the NFL, it’s now been like, ‘How can you express yourself?’ We’re giving players this opportunity to express themselves and they’re taking advantage of that.”

Diggs is another player that regularly stands out for his pre-game style. For instance, during the Wild Card round, the Bills wide receiver went viral for his multicolored, boxy sweater from Loewe.

Giants quarterback Tyrod Taylor also had several standout looks this season, mixing pieces from labels like Vetements, Bottega Veneta and Fear of God with smaller brands like Hed Mayner, Kusikohc and Namachecko.

Smith said he enjoyed following Browns linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah’s style — he attended the football games wearing traditional Ghanian clothing to pay homage to his roots.

Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah
Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah

“His outfits are just strong cultural reflections of his ties to Ghana every week,” Smith said. “It’s custom, it’s traditional outfits and they give me goosebumps. They’re so amazing and so gorgeous. He stands out because he’s wearing something that means so much to him.”

Smith explained one of the biggest surprises this season was the amount of players who gravitated towards Rick Owens for their tunnel looks, including Geno Smith, Elijiah Moore, D’Andre Swift and others.

“Surprisingly this year there was a lot of Rick Owens in a way that I didn’t ever see coming just because to me, Rick Owens is so high-concept fashion,” he explained. “If you’re into fashion and you’re a native fashion speaker, you know Rick Owens is really important, so it’s been really cool to see players wearing Rick Owens. It’s almost like nodding to the fact that they’re really invested in fashion and being a part of that space.”

With the divisional round taking place this past weekend, the conference championships to follow and the Super Bowl next month, Smith and Fox are anticipating even more viral fashion moments to come, especially with the recent men’s fashion week collections giving players new looks to test out.

“This is our players’ biggest moment and where they’re going to receive all the spotlight,” Fox said. “I’m excited to see as our players continue to play at home or travel just how they lean into [fashion]. Then, I think with the Super Bowl, it’s one of the biggest events in the world and it’s a cultural moment. It’s really the epitome of sports and entertainment coming together.”

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