Getty Seattle Seahawks President Chuck Arnold discussed the team's upcoming uniform announcement.
F
or years, Lumen Field in Seattle has been regarded as one of the toughest places for opponents to play. That was quite evident when the Seattle Seahawks posted a 34-6 home record from 2012-16.
For 13 straight seasons, the Seahawks never posted a losing record at home.
But that streak ended in 2021 with the Seahawks submitting a 3-5 record at Lumen Field. Dating back to Dec. 2020, Seattle is 5-7 at home including the playoffs.
Seahawks President Chuck Arnold seemed well aware of the team’s first losing record at home since 2008 while appearing on The Dave ‘Softy’ Mahler and Dick Fain Show on 950 KJR Radio in honor of President’s Day. Arnold talked at length about the fan experience, sharing the organization’s plans for Lumen Field upgrades and hinting at future throwback uniform possibilities.
ALL the latest Seahawks news straight to your inbox! Join the Heavy on Seahawks newsletter here!
Upgrades Coming to Lumen Field
It’s an arm’s race of sorts when it comes to NFL teams building stadiums. With new stadiums costing more than $1 billion to build (in some cases such as SoFi Stadium, way more than $1 billion), places such as Lumen Field — despite only being 20 years old — are becoming out of date.
But the Seahawks are planning to install major upgrades before the 2022 season to improve Lumen Field and perhaps recapture some home-field advantage.
“If all things go according to plan — and that’s with production, shipping, installation, those things — we are going to have two new video boards in the north end of the building in 2022,” Arnold said during his guest radio appearance.
“They’re going to be double the size of what you currently see there where those hustle boards are right now, I guess, on the east and the west side of the ‘Hawks Nest.’”
As much as the upgrades are a sense of pride for the organization and could lead to helping the team win more at home, Arnold stressed how much the stadium upgrades are also about continuing to build the Seahawks brand and improving the fan experience.
“Coming out of a pandemic, we’ve got to kind of re-imagine our guest experience a little bit,” Arnold said. “We’ve got to figure out what it’s like to continue that home-field advantage, and how we can make sure that we are exceeding our — the 12s’ — expectation every time they come to Lumen Field.
“For us, it’s keeping the brand strong. We feel like we do have a place in this community, but we want to always make sure we are impactful to this community, as well. That’s a role we need to play.”
Seahawks Retro Uniforms On The Way?
In addition to sharing the stadium upgrades, Arnold teased what the organization has planned for the team’s future home uniforms.
Arnold explained that the organization has wanted to showcase a throwback uniform based on what the Seahawks wore in the 1970s and 1980s, but it didn’t make sense to do with the team’s dark blue helmet.
But last June, Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk reported the NFL approved a plan to permit alternate helmets. Arnold says that makes the dream of the Seahawks wearing their old uniforms again a real possibility.
“The league has now, in 2022, allowed the second helmet option,” Arnold said. “With that, we’re getting closer [to a retro uniform]. We won’t see it in 2022, but we are making really good progress. We know the fans are going to love the throwbacks.”
Arnold added in order for the throwback uniform to be ready, the manufacturer must have enough time to produce mass quantities of the jersey for retail markets.