Jasmyne Reese (left), the daughter of Giants general manager Jerry Reese, and Jessica Jones, granddaughter of Cowboys owner Jerry, bring a fashion face-off to their teams’ rivalry. (Daniel Jackson for NFL)
It takes a lot to get a reaction from the tough-to-impress crowd at New York Fashion Week.
But Suzanne Johnson, the wife of Jets owner Woody Johnson, did just that when she turned up at the Badgley Mischka show Tuesday with a gaggle of her girlfriends. Their uniform: matching shrunken, Swarovski-detailed Jets jerseys.
“It was an explosion,” says Johnson of the attention from curious shutterbugs and editors.
“We just ended up wearing the shirts, and everyone went wild,” adds the superspouse, who paired the green jersey with a Theory blazer and Hudson jeans.
That moment came courtesy of the second NFL Women’s Apparel: Fit for You collection, which is launching its latest ad campaign this weekend — with the theme “Rivalry.” It features wives and daughters of owners, players and executives modeling the gear alongside their teams’ adversaries.
But it’s all in good fun, swears Johnson, who appears with Gwen Reese, the wife of Giants general manager Jerry Reese.
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“New Yorkers stick together. We’re friends 364 days of the year, but on game day, it’s on,” says Johnson, who struck up a friendship with Reese after the July shoot.
“I sent her a good-luck text the other night [before the Jets-Cowboys game],” says Reese. “We’re not rivals. We’re partners, except that there is a big game on Christmas Eve. The only good luck she’ll get from me [then] is no injuries,” she adds of the Jets-Giants contest.
Reese’s 19-year-old daughter, Jasmyne, posed in ads with Jessica Jones, the granddaughter of the Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, for the divisional-rivalry shot.
And in a nod to last year’s Super Bowl opponents, Alex McCarthy, the daughter of Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy, is pitted against Meghan Rooney, the daughter of Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II.
The push to offer female fans more stylish gear has been a priority for the league, which is placing the ads in lady mags such as People Stylewatch, Cosmo and even the style bible, Vogue.
“We have such a robust female fan base,” says Tracey Bleczinski, the NFL’s VP of consumer products, who says 44 percent of the league’s followers are women.
“Our female fans want to show that they’re fans, but they want to do it in a unique way.” The offerings — which are available on NFLShop.com and at stores such as Victoria’s Secret — have expanded beyond the blinged-out fitted jersey to include beauty products and accessories. Logo-emblazoned rain boots, high heels, team-color nail polish, bangles and even a $2,000 Italian leather bag are now on sale.
“I can dress as an executive and sit in the owner’s box and still show my team pride,” says Tanya Snyder, whose husband owns the Washington Redskins.
The sophisticated blonde, who posed with Charlotte Jones Anderson, daughter of the Dallas owner, will don a sequined tank top under a blouse and Dolce and Gabbana suit on game day.
“I’m a born-and-raised New Yorker, and I’m a fashion junkie. When this line came out, I was completely thrilled because it’s expressing your fandom, and it’s fun and cute,” says Suzanne Johnson, who got the nod from actor Michael Douglas in her Jets team colors.
“I went to dinner with Michael in the jersey and he said, ‘Va va voom. I’m getting one of those for my wife.’ ”
Talk about a style touchdown.