Later this week, the Cleveland Browns will unveil their long-awaited new uniforms.
But it appears that fans won't have to wait until Wednesday's official release to see the team's new threads.
On Sunday, Browns executive vice president and owner JW Johnson shared an unexpected "Easter egg" when he tweeted a picture from the team's new uniform photoshoot. While at first glance, the picture of a shadowed silhouette didn't reveal much about the Browns' new unis, that didn't stop fans from playing with the photo's lighting to find every possible clue, including the removal of the jersey's wordmark and a return to the team's traditional sleeve and sock striping.
Those details lined up with the first extensive "leak" of the Browns' new uniforms, which was provided by Uni-Watch.com's Paul Lukas. On Monday, Lukas shared extensive renderings of three new Browns uniforms, which he said are based on pictures of the team's plans that had been provided by a source.
While Lukas noted that the plans he received were from October 2018 and that the team could have made some smaller tweaks between then and now, he largely expects the uniforms he mocked up to resemble the same ones that are unveiled on Wednesday.
The designs done by Uni-Watch depict a return to the Browns' classic uniforms, with tradition striping on the sleeves and socks. The 'Color Rush' alternate set, meanwhile, no longer includes any striping on the sleeves or a 'Cleveland' wordmark across the chest.
Uni-Watch's renderings line up with last week's video tease, in which the Browns hinted at a return to a more traditional look after having worn a modernized uniform style since 2015. Speaking to NBC Sports' Peter King on Monday, Johnson also implied that fans of the Browns' more historic look will be happy with Wednesday's release.
"Our fans wanted us to get back to our roots, to our tradition,” Johnson said. “We’ve always had a classic, clean and iconic look. We’re a traditional team, like Green Bay, Pittsburgh, Dallas. Our fans weren’t super-thrilled with our uniform [change] the last time. Now we’ve been able to figure out a way for us to go back to more of a traditional look."