A vision of corporate control, Stram’s personal dress impacted how he believed his team should look. As innovative as Stram was in developing offenses, and defenses, too, he was just as committed to his teams exhibiting as classy a look off the field as they did on it.
As far back as the franchise’s founding, the Texans set new standards in appearance as they traveled or showed up for games. As early as the 1960 season, all players were presented with Arrow white shirts that they wore proudly for many of their appearances or trips to away games. Players could be seen climbing aboard planes dressed in red blazers emblazoned with the team’s logo. The city or origin may have changed in 1963 upon the move to Kansas City but the red jacket remained standard wear with the only alteration being the Chiefs logo. (See examples in the Chiefs Hall of Honor).
By 1969 and the team’s trip to the Super Bowl, the jackets had changed to black and the slacks gray. Stram’s double-breasted suits, hat, and high boots were part of his regular Sunday dress as well. Sadly, those days are gone and while the occasional player dresses in suit and tie for road games, the sideline wear for coaches is limited to NFL-endorsed products.
