Jersey barrier in Denver.

[Mark Farinella]

The Patriots will be heading to one of my favorite NFL cities this weekend for one of those AFL Legacy Games, in which both they and the Denver Broncos will be wearing throwback uniforms.

But in the Broncos' case, it may as well be "throw-up" uniforms.

The Broncos, whose current uniforms aren't among my favorites (I still prefer the Orange Crush unis and the "D" logos on the helmets from the 1970s and 1980s), didn't opt for the orange theme of their past for their 1960s "legacy" uniforms, and instead went with their introductory season. I've done screen captures of the helmet and the uniform shirt, and as you will probably agree, they are hideous.

It also makes me wonder what the Patriots will be wearing this weekend. With the Broncos' shirts such a vivid yellow, I can't see how the Patriots would head out there with a white version of their mid-'60s throwback shirt. When the owners of the eight original franchises lined up for a publicity photo when these games were announced, Robert Kraft was holding the white "road" version of the Patriots' throwback choice.

Unfortunately, I won't be at Invesco Field at Mile High to see the result in person. I'll be watching on TV, like the rest of you. The last time I didn't attend a game in Denver was 1991, Dick MacPherson's initial season as head coach.

The Broncos' current uniforms, as I said, aren't among my favorites -- probably because they took a great logo and played games with it. Next time you see a close-up of a Denver helmet or a fully-uniformed player, look closely at the stallion-head logo ... at the nostril, in particular, The nostril is in the shape of the Nike "swoosh," a little inside joke by the company that originally designed the change. Years later, Reebok manufactures all NFL apparel -- but they've had to keep the "swoosh" as part of the logo.

Yeah, I've heard all the denials that it wasn't really the Nike swoosh. Look at the side panels of the shirts and pants and tell me that Nike didn't leave its mark all over the design.