STL Post-Dispatch April 12th 2000

 The 2000 Rams will look markedly different than the team that won the Super Bowl in January. And it's more than just all the offseason changes in the coaching staff and on the depth chart.

The Rams will sport new uniforms for the new millennium, with the official unveiling scheduled for 5:30 p.m. today at Dillard's department store at Crestwood Plaza.

"After what we did last season, it's nice to have a new look," cornerback Dre' Bly said. "Coming into the scene in 2000, it's a different team. We're going to bring something different to the field. I think it'll be good for St. Louis and for the NFL."

In short, royal blue is out; navy blue is in as one of the team's primary colors. Similarly, the canary yellow of past seasons has been replaced by a more traditional "Notre Dame-style" gold.

Instead of having numerals on the jersey sleeves, the new "unis" will sport a menacing-looking Rams head. And in the biggest change, the Rams will have three styles of pants -- white, gold and blue.

One thing will stay the same: The Rams' historic curly horns will remain on the helmet. The Rams were the first team in the NFL to have a logo on their helmets: Rams running back Fred Gehrke, an industrial graphic designer in the offseason, created the design in 1948.

The Rams began working on their new uniforms two years ago, long before the team's Super Bowl championship.

Almost since the day the franchise moved to St. Louis in 1995, team president John Shaw said, fans here expressed a desire to have a uniform that would represent the "St. Louis" Rams, rather than a style reminiscent of the team's half-century stay in the Los Angeles area.

"Over a period of a couple of years, we had several focus groups and exit polls trying to hear from our fans as to what they really wanted," Shaw said. "We really started this process two years ago, and it had to be finalized by Sept. 1."

The Rams originally hoped to decide on the new uniforms by Sept. 1, 1998, which meant they would have been wearing the new togs in 1999. But the organization failed to reach a consensus on colors or style, and the decision was put off another year.

A consensus finally was reached by this past Sept. 1, or 11 days before the Rams' season opener against Baltimore. Why Sept. 1? NFL Properties, the merchandising arm of the NFL, needs the lead time to get the products out to suppliers.

Rams players Kevin Carter, Mike Jones, Ricky Proehl, D'Marco Farr and Kurt Warner are scheduled to model the new uniforms and assorted other Rams gear at today's fashion show at Dillard's. The new merchandise will be on sale immediately at Dillard's.

"I think for a week, Dillard's will have an exclusive, and then after that all suppliers will have it," Shaw said.

Most players have seen sketches of the new uniforms, and most are raving about their new look.

"It's a hot uniform," safety Keith Lyle said.

"It's going to be sweet," wide receiver Torry Holt said. "The colors last year were kind of old-fashioned."

But what about those three pairs of pants? NFL teams traditionally wear one pants color at home and another on the road. "We can mix and match them however we want," running back Marshall Faulk said. "We'll give the fans a bunch of different looks. I like that."

Several years ago, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones broke out special "big-game" jerseys when his team played a particularly important contest.

Perhaps the Rams can have "prime-time" pants, saving one pants color for their Monday night and Sunday night games.

"I'm leaving all those decisions up to our coach and our prime- time players," Shaw said, laughing.

Ram-blings: The Monday midnight deadline passed without Rams restricted free agents Dexter McCleon and Taje Allen getting a contract offer from another club. As a result, McCleon and Allen are property of the Rams as long as the team maintains its one-year tender offer of $472,000 to both cornerbacks.

Partially addressing a need to add depth on the offensive line, the Rams have signed tackle Steve Scifres, a street free agent, to a one-year deal. Scifres, 28, was a third-round draft pick by the Dallas Cowboys in 1997 out of the University of Wyoming.
Illustration

GRAPHIC; Caption: Graphic/Logo - (New Rams logo) Get a sneak peek at the Rams' new look. A1