National Football League - Denver Broncos
Denver Broncos Unveil New Alternate Jersey
Orange in Vogue, No Matter What One's Tastes Are
 Clinton Portis, the Broncos' lightning-fast running
back makes a fashion statement every day. One day, it's
a faux fur hat. Another, it's something simpler, like a
Broncos cap tilted to the left.
Or then there's days like this past weekend, when the
Broncos' prized rookie looked more like a superhero. Not
The Flash, whom he resembles on the field when making
one of his down-the-sideline sprints, but another,
perhaps the Silver Surfer.
"I had on a silver suit and (other players) thought
it was kind of shiny," Portis said.
The man who'll be handing him the football, Steve
Beuerlein, is one of more traditional and conservative
tastes. So he had a different take on what Portis donned
for the airplane ride.
"When we got on the plane the other day, Clinton was
wearing pajamas -- in my definition of pajamas,"
Beuerlein said. "But he thought they were pretty sharp
threads."
But one of the joys of football is that it brings
people of disparate backgrounds, cultures, and tastes
together for a common cause. And for Beuerlein and
Portis, who sit at opposite ends of the fashion runway,
and the rest of the Broncos, the commonality takes a
new-but-old twist on Sunday, as the Broncos wear orange
uniforms at home for the first time since January 1997.
"Everyone's excited about wearing them," said Portis,
who is admittedly comfortable in the color, having worn
it during most of the home games he played in at the
University of Miami. "Hopefully this is a change (for
the better) for us."
Completing the look for Portis is all about
accessorizing. He's worn orange shoes and orange gloves
with the blue uniforms of previous games, so now he
hopes to find some blue to complete the prime-time
ensemble.
"I've got to find something (blue)," Portis said..
"See I'm going to wear the orange gloves, orange shoes
... I'm going to paint my face orange, too."
That would be a bit much for free safety Izell Reese,
who had the most succinct of descriptions to describe
the special attire.
"Loud," Reese said.
 But
to him, they are better than the brightly colored
alternative -- the orange throwback uniforms that were
worn last Thanksgiving against the Cowboys. As a Dallas
safety that day, Reese got an up-close look at those
uniforms, and was a tad aghast at the sight -- even
though he loved the semi-throwback he and his
then-teammates donned.
"Of course, our uniforms looked nice because we had
the big stars on the shoulders," Reese said, "But those
Broncos uniforms from Thanksgiving last year? They
should have kept those in the throwback because those
things are kind of ugly.
"This uniform isn't that bad. It's orange, it's loud,
but at the same time it's the new style."
It's all fun, it's all good for conversation and in
the end, it's all meaningless as far as the chances of
winning or losing go.
"I'm a stickler to the rule: The uniform doesn't make
the team, the team makes the uniforms," linebacker Keith
Burns said.
This article was taken from
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