There are several different jackets that football players are known for wearing. The large jackets worn by NFL players in cold weather games are called sideline capes. The jackets worn by football players in high school are called letterman jackets.
Quarterbacks and wide receivers may also wear protective equipment referred to as flak jackets. You will also notice officials wear equipment such as the band worn on referees’ wrists and hands.
Sideline Capes
If you are wondering what jackets professional football players wear you are likely wondering about sideline capes.
When late in the season playing in an outdoor game you will often see NFL players wearing these sideline capes.
These capes are more like oversized jackets that fit over top of a player’s equipment. Since these jackets fit on top of the shoulder pads they are incredibly large.
The purpose of these sideline capes is to keep the player’s body heat within the cape so the player does not get cold on the sideline.
Staying warm is incredibly important for football players especially those that use their hands. Players like quarterbacks and wide receivers will play noticeably worse when their hands are cold.
For this reason, many of these sideline capes are going to feature pockets as well.
Looking at these jackets on television many fans believe that they are heated. Unfortunately, there is no heating in these jackets, they simply keep a player’s body heat within the jacket.
Some of the sideline capes are going to be lined with fleece while others will just be a nylon shell that protects you from the wind and the rain.
Oftentimes these sideline capes will also feature a large enough hole that players can slip this cape on while still wearing their helmet.
For this reason, wearing this sort of jacket while not playing football is not going to fit very well. These jackets are designed for players wearing football equipment making them quite large.
If you were to wear one of these shells without shoulder pads and helmet on it will likely be way too big.
Letterman Jackets
Another jacket commonly associated with football players is the letterman jacket. A letterman jacket is most commonly used in high school football.
Players will not wear this jacket during the game but will instead where it casually off the field.
For many years a letterman jacket was synonymous with being a football player.
In the hallways of a high school, you could often pick out which students were football players based on who wore letterman jackets.
They are not as popular as they once were but are still often associated with high school football teams.
The flak jacket
The last type of jacket that is associated with football players is the flak jacket. This piece of equipment is most commonly worn by quarterbacks and wide receivers.
A flak jacket in football is worn around the ribcage so that players are not injured when hit in this area. The soft padding around the ribs softens the blows when players are tackled.
Oftentimes this jacket is worn when a player already has a preexisting injury.
For example, if a player has a cracked rib it is likely he would wear a flack jacket in order to keep his ribs protected throughout a game.
A flak jacket is not going to provide full protection from injuries but it can certainly make things less painful.
That is all on football player jackets if you want to learn more see our guides to football players wearing jocks, why eye black is often worn or if you can use batting gloves as receiving gloves in football.
