LONDON — Across the Atlantic Ocean, the Broncos' trip to the United Kingdom has brought about new experiences for many players — and on Sunday, the team will create one of its own, as it will don a new uniform combination that the Broncos have never previously worn for a game.
Instead of their traditional all-white look, the Broncos will wear the white away tops with blue pants, which they have only worn as part of the all-blue alternate uniforms.
Prior to practice, the team announced the move on social media platforms, and Broncos President Damani Leech told press later that the decision was made after a conversation with team captains.
"There was an opportunity to meet with our captains and just learn about what we can do to make things better from their perspective," Leech said. "And we got on the topic of uniforms, which, if you don't know, is a multi-year process to actually change from a league standpoint, but we have flexibility in our tops and our bottoms. And that was one thing they pointed out they had not been able to do and wanted the opportunity to do it.
"And we said, 'Well, look, we're going to London. They drive on the opposite side of the road; we can flip our pants and see how it goes.'"
This will be the first time the Broncos have worn this combination. In recent years, the Broncos have worn a few alternate looks: the all-blue uniforms; blue tops with white bottoms, which was the original home uniform combo when the team rebranded in 1997; and an all-orange Color Rush uniform.
Safety Justin Simmons said that inside the locker room there has been interest in mixing up the team's uniforms. In previous practices, players have worn different combinations, including the white-on-blue look.
"I know a lot of guys love the blue on blue that we get to wear, or even the blue jerseys with the white pants," Simmons said. "I think just switching it up a little bit, you know. But I know a lot of guys like the combo. A lot of guys like what I have on now. We wear these in practice a lot and depending on who's wearing the white jerseys, guys notice. 'Russ' [Russell Wilson] and some of the other guys noticed that, 'Hey, those look pretty good. Is there any chance we can make that happen?' They asked around, and guess they made it happen. So, [we're] gonna wear them on Sunday, and I'm excited. I think it'll be cool. It's a look that we haven't had. … But I think it'll look pretty cool."
Melvin Gordon III is among the players who was excited about the move, which he described as "fire."
"I think we've been talking about this for weeks, the players," Gordon said. "We all wanted this. It's a mutual decision in the locker room."
However, Gordon recognized that as cool as the look may be, they have to get the win first and foremost.
"We've got to win in it," Gordon said. "Because if we don't, we probably won't ever wear it again. It's more of a reason to go out here and win on Sunday."
