Even though the Super Bowl is being played in Los Angeles this year, the Cincinnati Bengals will actually be the home team for the game and because of that, the Bengals got to make the first choice on which uniform to wear for Super Bowl LVI.
Even though teams wearing white have won 14 of the past 17 Super Bowls, the Bengals have decided they’re going to try and buck that trend: The team will be going with their black jerseys. The team will pair the jersey with white pants and orange socks.
The fact that the Bengals made the announcement by putting the uniform on a clothes hanger is a pretty hilarious inside joke for their fans.
Back in April, the Bengals released new uniforms, but that release wasn’t the first time that most fans had seen the new look jerseys. About a month before the new uniforms came out, someone leaked the new duds on Twitter and when that happened, they shared a picture of the new uniform on a clothes hanger.
The clothes hanger is now an infamous part of Bengals lore.
The fact that the Bengals are going to wear their black uniforms will likely come as surprise to some fans, who probably thought the Bengals might wear white after beating both the Chiefs and Titans in that color.
The Bengals clearly aren’t a superstitious team, otherwise they probably would have gone with white. Not only did they go 7-3 in white uniforms this year, but as we mentioned at the top, teams wearing white have won 14 OF THE PAST 17 Super Bowls. In last year’s Super Bowl, the Buccaneers wore their road white uniforms even though they were the home team playing in their home stadium.
On the Bengals’ end, they went just 2-4 wearing black this season, but one of those wins did come against the Raiders in the wild-card round when Cincinnati ended its 31-year drought without a postseason win.
This will mark the second time the Bengals have worn black in a Super Bowl. In their first appearance, a 26-21 loss to the 49ers in Super Bowl XVI, the Bengals also wore a black jersey. Interestingly enough, just like this year, the Bengals also unveiled new uniforms in 1981 and then rode that new look all the way to a Super Bowl appearance.
In Super Bowl XXIII, the Bengals wore white uniforms during their 20-16 loss to the 49ers. Since the Bengals are 0-1 in each color, they probably didn’t spent too much time thinking about what jersey would bring better luck.
As for the Rams, they haven’t picked a jersey combo yet, but their choice will certainly be interesting. White would make the most sense, but they don’t have a “normal” white uniform.
The Rams “white” road uniform is technically bone gray, which you can see below.
The Rams do have a white uniform, but it’s a “modern throwback” and the NFL hasn’t traditionally let teams wear a throwback uniform in the Super Bowl, which means the team will have to get permission from the league if they want to wear the uniform you see below. And while the NFL is a little strict on allowing throwbacks in a Super Bowl, they’ve done it twice: The 49ers in January of 1995 (75th anniversary drop shadow throwbacks), and again with the Rams when they lost to the Patriots a couple of years ago.
The Rams went 7-1 in their bone uniforms this year, but just 1-2 in their white throwbacks, so if they’re superstitious, then bone might make the most sense.
In their four Super Bowl appearances, the Rams are 1-3 overall, going 1-2 in their white uniforms and 0-1 in their royal blue jerseys.
By the way, if you’re wondering why the Bengals are the home team, it’s because the NFC and AFC alternate that honor every year. Even-numbered Super Bowls go to the AFC, which is why the Bengals are the home team even though the game is being played in the Rams’ stadium.