Carolina Panthers Whiskers Logo

With the 2012 National Football League season nearly upon us, now is as good a time as any to obsess once again on one of my favorite topics — logos. So I’m going to offer up my choices for the best and worst NFL logos for all 32 current NFL franchises. Primary, alternate, and helmet logos listed on Chris Creamer’s outstanding logo website are all under consideration. Today I look at the four squads of the NFC’s South division.

Previous entries:AFC East, NFC East, AFC North, NFC North, AFC South

Atlanta Falcons

NFL Carolina Panthers 8-by-8-Inch Die cut Colored Decal. 4.4 out of 5 stars 20. Get it as soon as Tue, Sep 22. FREE Shipping on your first order shipped by Amazon. More Buying Choices. $11.43 (3 new offers) Amazon's Choice. For carolina panthers decals. Carolina Panthers Logo Vinyl Decal Sticker For Car Window, Yeti RTIC Tumbler Rambler Water Bottle, Laptop MacBook iPad Tablet Phone, Wall.

Best

I totally understand why Falcons fans supported the team’s image update several years ago. Let’s face it, the franchise didn’t exactly have a lot of glory years with the old look. But I have to be consistent in my love of tradition and pick the team’s original falcon.

That said, the new logo is pretty good.

Worst

Carolina Panthers New Logo

Did you ever catch that the bird in the team’s logos is supposed to form the letter F? So slap an A on there and you get the team’s initials. It explains this one, but doesn’t excuse it.

Carolina Panthers

Best

This is a slight update from Carolina’s original logo. The gray whiskers were changed to blue and the head was made to look more realistic and less overtly geometrical. I like it.

Worst

Carolina Panthers Whiskers Logo

Looks like something from the sign of a strip club called Pantherz. Not that I’d know anything about such places.

New Orleans Saints

Best

I’m a big fan of the Saints’ original logo set and color scheme, and this alternate one is a gem. I’ve seen it with different colors used for the wordmark and the fleur de lis outline. I snagged this version from an old sticker.

Worst

Decent idea, horrible execution. Louisiana looks like a big blob in this drawing. The newer takes on this design have much cleaner lines and are much more appealing.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Best

Yeah that’s right, I like Buccaneer Bruce. You got a problem with that?

Worst

I think there must have been a way to update the original Tampa Bay look without discarding it completely. This looks like the logo of a souvenir shop from some pirate-themed museum or something.

People found this post by searching for:

'Panthers', 'panthers logo', 'atlanta falcons old logo', 'old atlanta falcons logo', 'old falcons logo', 'Atlanta Falcons Logo', 'new orleans saints logo', 'carolina panthers'

Though the Carolina Panthers have only been a football team since 1995, they have a devoted following. The team is popular because it is one of the few professional football teams based in North Carolina. They use a color scheme of black, blue, and silver to make the team uniforms and logo stand out from other competitors. To learn more about the Carolina Panthers logo, keep reading this article. We will examine the history behind the Carolina Panthers logo, and show you the changes that have been made to it.

Carolina Panthers Logo Design Elements

Since the team is named “The Panthers,” they use an image of a panther’s head and neck as their logo. The panther is mostly black, but some aqua blue is used to highlight the edges of the cat. Some silver is also used in the logo to depict the cat’s eyes and teeth. Its face is pointed to the right, and its neck is very large and muscular-looking.

On the right side, the panther’s blue whiskers extend past the rest of its face. The panther’s ears are flattened, and its mouth is open to make it look like it is aggressively growling. A snarling jaw and eyebrows help make the panther look even fiercer.

Changes and Evolution

1. Shape

The panthers have only had one change to their logo since the team was created. Though the overall shape remained the same, there are several slight differences between the two logos. Originally, the Panthers logo had a thin black outline, and then a thick blue line surrounding the entire panther. The panther itself was still black, but its whiskers were silver.

This older logo looked more two dimensional and cartoon-like, while the newer one looks more realistic and ferocious. Another difference is that the original logo was mostly upright, and the panther in the newer logo looks like he is leaning forward slightly.

2. Color

All versions of the Panthers logo have been black, blue, and silver. The colors are incredibly similar, but the blue in the older logo is a little darker. This version of blue was deeper and cooler, so it looked more like a light royal blue instead of an aqua.

Influences/Inspiration

Since so many sports teams are named after large cats, the Carolina Panthers had to design their logo carefully in order to stand out. To look more unique, the panther is drawn very realistically, and it is not placed in a circle or any other enclosed shape. When the logo was redone in 2012, the Panthers marketing team made a conscious decision to change the panther’s brow and face shape while redesigning the logo. They wanted to make it look more menacing and aggressive.

The current Panthers logo is also designed to look good in digital environments. Now, that so much of the Panthers marketing takes place on computers, smartphones, and television screens, they needed something with clean lines and bold shapes. Removing small outlines and fussy details allows the logo to continue to look good whether it is shrunken or blown up.

Trivia

• Many people assume the panther on the logo is supposed to represent the mountain lions found in the Carolinas, but it is actually supposed to represent the type of large, jungle cat found in Africa and Asia.
• A black panther is technically not a species; it is just an all-black jaguar or leopard. This is rather ironic, since the Jaguars are also an NFL team that joined in the same year as the Panthers.
• When the cat from the Carolina Panthers logo shows up in the form of a costumed mascot, he is called “Sir Purr.”

Conclusion

The sleek design of the Carolina Panthers logo helps this football team stand out from all their NFL competitors. Since it is so beloved by fans, the team made the smart decision to make a new logo that looks similar to the old logo. The updated version of the Carolina Panthers logo is more appropriate for the digital age, but it is still appealing to nostalgic fans.

Recommended Read: Patriots Logo Design History and Evolution