In an event that might rival the introduction of Gritty, the Eagles have changed their well-known wordmark. And unlike Gritty, the negative reaction to the change might not be turning around any time soon.
Gone are the pointed edges of the E and S, along with the curvature at the bottom of the logo and the black shadows that help to pop it out before your eyes. It’s replaced with a more bland, flattened, straight forwarded logo that — while still including smaller, more curved points within the E’s — doesn’t seem to have the same effect.
The Eagles introduced a new wordmark, as of today: pic.twitter.com/11Z8fFcHjX
— Zach Berman (@ZBerm) June 16, 2022
According to The Athletic‘s Zach Berman, the new letting won’t be printed onto the Eagles’ jerseys for this season or in 2023. Instead, 2024 is the earliest in which the word mark will don the midnight green. For now, the word mark will be used for public-facing materials from Philadelphia.
The wordmark is the only change that’s occurring, as the Eagles primary logo will stay the same. With the midnight green jerseys coming out of retirement, perhaps the organization thought it was time for additional change-ups.
It’s actually the first time since 1996 that Philadelphia has changed their wordmark (via SportsLogos). If you’re trying to play devil’s advocate, you could say that after nearly three decades, some minor design alterations could be good for a team.
However, all you need to do is take a quick look at Twitter to see the ongoing hatred. And ridicule. And sobbing. Did I mention the hatred? So, is it warranted, or is this hoopla all for nothing? Yes, yes it is.
Yeah… It’s Really Bad
I’m not going to sugarcoat it. The change is pretty horrendous. Sorry, just plain horrendous. “It’s only a wordmark, there’s no reason to get so upset,” some might respond, shrugging off valid responses of logo enthusiasts everywhere.
However, this is so much more than a simple lettering change. Wordmarks and logos help to distinguish the identity’s brand, and the Eagles captured something amazing with their previous lettering. Its distinct font imprinted in your brain, along with all the memories that come with the teams of that era.
A change wouldn’t be bad if the new logo wasn’t so corporate-like. It’s hard to get excited seeing something that would hardly separate you from another team in an NFL store. It might be tough to for some designers to admit, but minimalism typically doesn’t go over well.
Perhaps the team will change it back following the backlash, but I get the feeling they’ll stick to their guns and run with it. And sadly, Philadelphia just lost one of their defining features today.
