New York Daily News February 4th 1998

 Before he signed his first free agent, before he staged his first practice and before he chewed out his first player, Bill Parcells decided the Jets needed a new look actually a new "old" look. He came to that conclusion in his second day on the job, almost one year ago.

His vision became a reality yesterday at a Manhattan news conference, where Parcells joined by former Jets great Joe Namath and several members of the Super Bowl III team unveiled the new uniform and new logo.

Now they can be called the retro Jets.

Using a "Back to the Future" theme, the Jets returned to their original uniform and logo, first worn at the club's inception in 1963 and adorned by the Namath-led Super Bowl III team.

The uniform represents "the pinnacle of the Jets era," Parcells said. "This is the identity of the Jets. I think each team needs an identity. When you think of the Jets, this is what we think of."

Said Namath: "We're all thrilled. It brings up all kinds of nostalgic feelings. It's more of a natural for me. This is more of what we know."

The Jets also will return to their original white helmet with their old green logo on the sides. The uniform differs slightly from the original version in that the green is a darker shade hunter green, if you must know.

The logo also has been clarified, and a patch has been added to the front of the jersey for better identification. But some things don't change: The jersey still has white stripes and numbers on the sleeves.

The Jets wore their original uniforms from 1963 to 1977. They changed in 1978, going to green helmets and a new logo, with "Jets" spelled out.

Say goodbye to those threads. Say hello to the originals.

"I love them; it's a lot of tradition," said wide receiver Wayne Chrebet, who along with linebacker Mo Lewis and running back Adrian Murrell modeled the uniforms at the news conference. "It makes the will to succeed even greater, because we want to be part of that tradition."

People within the organization had been trying for years to make the change, but the movement always met opposition from the most recent head coaches. Not Parcells; just call him an old-fashioned kind of guy.

Actually, Parcells became smitten with the original uniforms in 1967, when as an assistant coach at West Point he often visited the Jets' training camp at the nearby Peekskill Military Academy.

"I always identified the Jets with those uniforms," he said.

Parcells wanted to make the switch for last season, but NFL Properties requires at least 12 months notice before the season. For marketing purposes, you understand. So they waited.

Owner Leon Hess applauded the move, saying in a statement, "I'm very happy we're going back to the uniforms and logo that we originated when we bought the team in 1963."

Hall of Fame coach Weeb Ewbank is particularly pleased that the white helmets are back. He said he had been trying for years to get the team to switch.

"The quarterback can pick out the white helmet better on the field," Ewbank said. "Paul Brown made sure the Browns and Bengals wore orange helmets so the quarterbacks could see the helmet. White is the next best color."