Packers Reveal History-Steeped Throwback Jersey

The 1923 jerseys, which will be worn at a to-be-determined game, feature an authentic look right down to the hand-painted helmets.

Here's the throwback look the Packers will wear this season, based on the 1923 team. | Bill Huber/Packers On SI

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers unveiled a new throwback jersey on Thursday, with the 1923 uniform featuring a hand-painted helmet that looks like it could have been worn by Curly Lambeau himself.

Why 1923? Because it was a critical year for the franchise, team historian Cliff Christl said.

“Somebody just asked me yesterday what was the most important decision in the history of the Packers,” Christl said. “They were thinking Bob Harlan’s hiring of Ron Wolf and I mentioned the hiring of (Vince) Lombardi, but the first thing I mentioned was the decision in 1923 to turn the Packers into a public corporation.

“If that had not occurred, there’s no way the Green Bay Packers would be here today if they had been owned by an individual. Just no way they could have survived all the roadblocks and near-death experiences the team had had for years. So, that’s critical. 1923 is as big a year as there has been in Packers history. Put some money in the bank.”

Returning to our roots@amfam pic.twitter.com/IyJGJ1z6Yz

— Green Bay Packers Football Club (@packers) July 24, 2025

The stock sale raised $5,000, Christl said, which allowed the team to buy the uniforms upon which the throwbacks are based.

The game at which the Packers will wear their new historic third jerseys will be announced later.

The throwbacks, featuring thin stripes on the shoulder pads, were three-and-a-half years in the making. They look “pretty much exactly like the uniform they wore in 1923,” Christl said, “as well as being contemporary enough to appeal to modern fans. You’ve got to reach a happy medium when you do that.”

How close are they to what the Lambeau-led team wore en route to a 7-2-1 record?

“I think it’s really close,” Christl said. Of course, “there were no color photos back then.”

The highlight might be the helmets. In previous throwback editions, the team wore plain brown helmets. These are painted to look authentic while providing player safety.

A look at the hand-painted helmets the Packers will wear. | Bill Huber/Packers On SI

A look at the hand-painted helmet sits atop a Jordan Love mannequin at the Packers Pro Shop.. | Bill Huber/Packers On SI

“I think they’re really cool,” Christl said. “Basically, that kind of captures the leather-helmet feel. Some guys weren’t wearing helmets in ’23.”

In January 1922, the Packers were kicked out of the fledgling NFL because they used players with college eligibility. They were readmitted in short order, but the team tried to distance itself from its original sponsor, Acme Packing Co. So, for a brief time, they were referenced as the Blues, though it never stuck.

The 1923 team was the first to wear blue and gold.

The throwback jerseys are fun for the players and a moneymaker for the team. Beyond that, these uniforms were made to correct the history.

In 2002, the NFL and Pro Football Hall of Fame put together a jersey history. At Christl’s urging, that history was yanked in the mid-2010s.

“Basically, they had gotten every uniform wrong during the Lambeau years,” he said. “The description was that it was a gold jersey with the blue stripes. Well, there’s plenty of proof that wasn’t the case.”

He added: “I really appreciate the fact that Mark Murphy and … everybody involved in this project insisted that this be done right, the colors be right. No more of, can I say, telling us what to do and screwing up our history. We got it done correctly.”