One of the best gifts you can give a sports fan is a team jersey of his or her’s favorite player. But it’s not enough to just know who has the hottest, most-coveted and best selling  jerseys. Sure, that will help narrow the player search down but there are also a few other factors to consider before buying a jersey.

The best sports jerseys, NFL or other, can run you anywhere from under $50 to over $350. That’s a big spread! Here are the things to consider before picking out an NFL jersey for a holiday gift:

There are typically three different kinds of jerseys:

1. Authentic Jerseys: These are the most expensive because they are, well, authentic! Meaning players wear this kind. Heavy weight and flawless quality with all the details sewn into the jersey.
2. Premier or Swingman Jerseys: These are high-quality, brand name imitation jerseys and are mid-priced usually in the $100’s. These are usually a medium weight/texture (nylon or polyester) and the deails are usually sewn as well.
3. Replica Jerseys: These jerseys run from $20-70ish and are a great alternative if you can’t afford the authentic or premier jerseys. They are usually light-weight quality with the details screen printed on, not sewn. They won’t last as long over the years as the other kinds but they are still great gifts!
4. Fashion Jerseys: These are novelty jerseys, usually for women but not always. Brands like Majestic make awesome jersey-looking tees and tanks that are embellished with sparkles!

You’ll notice in the cool scrolling amazon widget at the top that there are a few of each kind so you can see the difference. Players are available in each kind of jersey, it’s just up to you on how much you want to spend, and how much your sports fan is coveting that jersey!

There are also different types of jerseys that the players themselves wear:

1. Home Jerseys: Typically when a team plays at home they wear white or light colored jerseys (except NFL and NHL because they have to be complicated).
2. Away (Road) Jerseys: On the road, teams usually wear a dark or primary colored jersey (in their team colors of course)
3. Third or Alternate Jerseys: Sometimes teams make up a third kind of jersey to increase jersey sales to make sure they always look fabulous and in style. It’s still based on their team colors but will be a secondary color instead of their primary one used for their away jerseys.
4. Throwbacks  Jerseys: Ah throwbacks. A blantant ploy by Nike, adidas, and Reebok and the teams to drive jersey sales through the roof. Throwbacks are all the rage and are very coveted by fans. Over the last few years especially, teams have been rocking old school looking jerseys called “throwbacks.” The new jerseys are designed to look like jerseys from back in the day.
5. Practice Jerseys: Jerseys that the teams practice in, not play in games with.

One final note, always be careful who you order your jersey from. For the Top 20 NFL Jersey’s I’m linking directly to Amazon.com because they offer the biggest variety and ease of shopping. But always ensure that your seller is credible!

Here are the Top 20 Most Coveted, Most Popular, Best Selling, Most Big Name NFL Jerseys for the 2009 Holiday Season!

I’m also going to refer you to the article Top 20 Selling NFL Jerseys on Spike.Com because the commentary about each jersey is absolutely hysterical. I couldn’t have written it better myself!

Of the top 20:

11 are Quarterback Jerseys

1. Brett Favre, (Minnesota Vikings) The Comback Kid, er, Old Man! Favre is having one of the best seasons of his career, despite retiring like 3 times in the last 3 years….
2. Jay Cutler, (Chicago Bears)
3. Ben Roethlisberger, (Pittsburgh Steelers) Whooo Hoo Big Ben. He won Super Bowl XLIII and his jersey sales skyrocketed
4. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys) Although it’s undetermined whether it’s Tony’s Regular Jerseys or  The Tony Romo Pink  Jerseys that make his sales so great!
   
5. Mark Sanchez, (New York Jets) Yes, you see that right. Rookie Mark Sanchez who has led the Jets to a 4-6 record and has a QB rating of 66, is more popular than Tom Brady (rating 93), both Manning brothers (Peyton = 95 rating) and 2008 Rookie of the Year Matt Ryan.
6. Tom Brady, (New England Patriots) “For the person who has everything… except the exact same jersey as half the Boston Public School System.”
7. Eli Manning,( New York Giants) He might not be as good as his big brother on the field but he beat him at jersey sales!
8. Peyton Manning, (Indianapolis Colts)
9. Joe Flacco, (Baltimore Ravens)
10. Matt Ryan, (Altanta Falcons)
11. Aaron Rodgers, (Green Bay Packers)

*I’m also going to throw in Drew Brees Jerseys and Kurt Warner Jerseys into that list. Brees’s New Orleans Saints went 11-0 to start the season and are currently the rockstars of the NFL. And I heart Kurt Warner. I think he is awesome.

Three Top Jerseys are because of Steelers Bandwagoners….

1. Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steelers
2. Hines Ward, Pittsburgh Steelers
3. Ben Roethlisberger (he’s also on QB lists)

Four Jerseys are actually really awesome players

1. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
2. Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals
3. Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
4. LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers

And three top jerseys are the most popular just because of their player’s antics…..

1. Terrell Owens, ( Buffalo Bills )
2. Michael Crabtree, (San Fransisco 49ers)
3. Michael Vick, (Philadelphia Eagles)

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