Category Archives: Football Breaks

Review: 2011 Panini Contenders Football

  By Sports Card Blog | February 28, 2012 - 3:36 pm | ,
2 Comments

2011 Contenders football is out and it is once again one of the top products for NFL rookie autographs to buy for that season. With at least 4 autographs per hobby box, Panini packs in the rookie autographs in such a way that promotes value season after season. Even this season, there are the regular SPs as well as the variants with the hard signed, on card autographs. These hard signed variants (another link to more variants) are slightly edited in such a way where it is like a little game, trying to figure out if yours is the one with something edited off the original photo. Just more to chase after for you rookie collectors.

Besides the autographs, you still have a decent sized base set and some nice inserts to go after including the paralleled tickets and several rookie inserts. With the ticket design still in full effect, you get a recognized brand once again this year. Check out the bottom of the review for our gallery of hits and make sure you let us know what you think of this product by Panini.

Design:

The design isn’t one of the best of recent years, but it’s definitely not one of the worst. A positive that I take out of the design is the fact that the dreaded “white autograph box of death” is better built into the card so it doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb. I also really like the way the on-card autographs stand out above the stickers, so we definitely need to work on getting more players on-card in this product. But I’m not a huge fan of the layout in general and how the team colors dominate the card as they do. I would like to see more of an accent of those colors with a better design in place. Not terrible, but definitely not the best in recent memory.

Checklist:

I understand the aim of this product and what it’s supposed to be. This product is meant to be a prospecting product of sorts in football. It’s also all about the rookie autographs. So with the veteran base set, the legends in the inserts, and the rookie autographs and in inserts, it does what it’s supposed to do. I like the rookie choices as you have all your top rookies available. I would, however, like to see maybe one veteran autograph per box. That’s just me. I think it may reach more collectors like that, but this is a product based off of the rookie autographs. I just like variety in my boxes.

Value:

I actually find this to be one of Panini’s more higher value per box products. It’s easy to add value by adding in some great rookie autographs like Panini has done. But it’s harder to have a product succeed at making what seems like could be worthless rookie autographs valuable. With the way Panini short prints certain rookie autographs, it makes them more valuable because people need them to complete sets or just want that player. It drives the secondary market even more because people know that this product contains some of the more valuable rookie autographs of the year, and it’s more obtainable to the masses. Prices may drop on the product in a month or so, but it’s a worthy break if you want to spend the cash.

Overall:

Overall, this could of been one of the football products of the year if I liked the design more. Design is always pretty subjective, so you may like it just because it looks better to you. That shouldn’t stop you from buying this product. The checklist is full of great rookies that hold some great value. Speaking of value, there are no game used memorabilia pieces in this product, which to me, is great. All autographs in this product, and that makes it one of the best of the year and why everyone looks forward to it. Improve the design, and it’s back to being a winner once again. I’d love to see a patch autograph per box added as well, but that’s just a dream.

Thank you Panini for providing this box to review. I will be adding a couple autographs towards the Blogoversary party coming up all April long, so stay tuned for that. Until then, check out the gallery below.

Not shown: Kyle Rudolph Autograph Redemption

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Review: 2011 Panini Limited Football

  By Sports Card Blog | February 15, 2012 - 11:53 pm | ,
1 Comment

2011 Panini Limited football is here and it’s once again a product that can deliver some extremely rare and high end cards or be a complete dud. It’s the nature of the beast with this type of product that is only one pack per box and delivers either a single autograph and a couple game used pieces or a couple of autographs and a game used piece. It’s a gamble of a break at $100 but if you hit it good, you really hit it good.

Again, let me know what you think of putting all of the hits at the bottom of the review instead of near the top with this new gallery function instead of my little manual slideshow I had before.

Now, let’s take a look at this product by opening it!

Design:

Much better design over last year’s Limited product and I really like the use of the foil board here. You have the player cut out with a foil board background and just enough transparency to see the action in the background. It looks pretty good with the smaller name labels on the bottom and gives more attention to the player on the card. Even the Legend and Phenoms look great with the lettering placement. Again, I’m not a huge fan of the “white box” for autographs and really am pleading for just a lighter background in that area. As for the game used pieces, they look solid and Panini always does a great job die-cutting their products with useful information. *cough Topps*

Checklist:

I never see a real issue with Panini’s checklists most of the time. I don’t have a problem here either. They are always filled with top rookies, top veterans, decent retired players, and names people like. It was really cool pulling a Bo Jackson cards in this set as a Legend card so I really enjoyed that. I also enjoyed pulling a top rookie autograph in Demarco Murray. Jared Allen is almost as good as a defensive player hit you can get, but probably not great in terms of…

Value:

This product is just so hit or miss the value has to be right down the middle. For $100 you get a break similar to this. One autograph and a couple of game used pieces while some boxes will contain two autographs. I do like that I received a nice patch, however, I would argue that this product would be much better if you were guaranteed two autographs and one game used piece. It’s just come to the point where game used cards (besides nice patches like the one I pulled) are becoming so common it’s not adding value anymore unless it’s low numbered or a patch. At $75 this would be a better break, $100 is just too much for what it is.

Overall:

Overall, what I’ve repeatedly stated about Panini Limited as a product is still true. It’s a very hit or miss product. The design is much better then past years and it looks like a much higher end looking product. It could use some work in the insert department and the white box is starting to get annoying but it still looks good. Panini’s checklists are always solid and fruitful so no issue there. However, the value is where the issue with this product is. It needs a little bit more or the price needs to be lowered to where it used to be a few years ago where it was $75ish a box at release.

Again, thanks to Panini for providing this box for review. Make sure you check out their blog for all the Panini information you need…after you check mine :)

Here are the cards:

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Review: 2011 Panini Plates & Patches Football

  By Sports Card Blog | February 14, 2012 - 11:59 am | ,
1 Comment

2011 Panini Plates & Patches is back out again this year as a high end offering featuring an on-card autographed patch card per box and some other goodies. The highlight is obviously the auto patch, but there are some other interesting hits as well in the form of printing plates and other rare collectibles which help add value to this product. While it is only a one pack per box product, it’s a blast to open knowing you will have some possible great hits inside. Our hits are at the bottom after the review.

Let me know if you like the gallery at the bottom where you can view all of the cards at once compared to the little clickable slide show I had before. Any information is good information.

So let’s get to the reviewing!

 

Design:

My main complaint about the design of this product is that it looks exactly like the product from last year. I like some differential from year to year and Plates & Patches doesn’t really change all that much. However, it was not a bad design to begin with so that’s a good thing. Another small complaint is that there could be a little more room for autographs with the patch autographed cards. It looks great that they are on-card, just looks like it could use like a 1/4 inch more space. The inserts all look great and to the theme but City Lights (as I pulled below) looks completely out of place in this set. Not sure where they were going there.

Checklist:

As always, I never really have a problem with Panini checklists for products. They included all the top rookies and a few rare top veteran autographs here and there. Thankfully the low end rookies aren’t in the patch autograph version, but in a product this expensive I wish the low end rookies were at least offensive rookies. I mean, the linebacker I pulled probably has no chance of EVER being a superstar. At least I have a chance if I pulled Greg McElroy or Julius Thomas. A higher end product should be more about value then catering to someone who would want a Bills linebacker rookie autograph. Just me on that one.

Value:

I won’t mention my thoughts on lower end rookie autographs here as it is above but that is part of it. But the plain jersey cards should at least contain another patch as well. Again, high end product should bring out higher end cards. The on-card rookie patch autos are great though and feature some of the top rookies and offensive rookies of the draft. It helps with the great draft class too so there is a ton of value in the patch autos. But the rest of the product should have a little bit of an upgrade, besides the printing plate and low numbered type stuff (like the DeAngelo Williams auto). Not terrible value, I’ve seen a ton worse, but I think it could use a little bit of an upgrade.

Overall:

Overall, Plates & Patches isn’t a great product, but it’s not terrible either. It suffers most in the value department as it falls under a high end product, but delivers slightly below that with the plain jerseys and an underwhelming plain rookie autograph checklist. The highlights of the on-card autographs and decent design are great as well as some of the rare stuff you could pull from this product that make this a decent seller. I think it needs a few little upgrades to make it feel a little more high end and it would definitely be a great product.

As always, thanks to Panini and make sure you check out their official blog for all new product information.

Video will be uploaded soon.

 

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Review: 2011 Topps Magic Rookies Football

  By Sports Card Blog | February 2, 2012 - 11:16 pm | ,
3 Comments

2011 Topps Magic football was from a cannon shot out of nowhere. There wasn’t much information about this product until about a week before it’s release date and we were able to grab a box. This box is only found exclusively on ShopTopps for $19.99. Inside you will find 11 rookie cards along with 1 autographed rookie card. This is an interesting product to review at it’s low price point and guaranteed autograph but we will do our best.

Let’s see what we pulled:

Base:

Autograph:

Design:

If there is one thing I love about this product, it’s the photography and the Gypsy Queen-like styling to the photos. They almost look painted which gives off a great effect to the eye. I understand Magic is a retro brand and Topps loves the whole retro thing, but I just don’t care for the overall design of the cards. Kinda bleh and boring for a retro design when they could of made it look retro, but added some contemporary design elements like they do with A&G. Plus the sticker autographs don’t look very good on that design.

Checklist:

At a price of $20, the checklist of this product is great. You will find all of top rookies in this checklist with a chance at their autograph so it’s great in that regard. You know coming in that this is a rookie only product with the title, so you can really take off points there for having just rookies. The checklist is exactly what this product describes and that is all the rookies you want.

Value:

This product for $20 is a great gamble. For the price of a regular blaster, you may only get 12 cards total, but they are all rookies and you are guaranteed an autograph. Everyone wants hits when they open their packs and by guaranteeing an autograph, you are giving everyone exactly what they want. The checklist features all the top rookies in both base and autographs forms so that just adds value when you can pull a Newton or Murray autograph or any other top rookie. Great job there. There are a ton of duds, like the one I pulled, and I’m guessing there is not an equal number of say Cam Newton autographs as there is of the player I pulled. But it’s not bad at all.

Overall:

Overall, this is a solid offering by Topps. There are a ton of positives in this product that any company can take and use in the future. While the design is kind of boring and could be a little more “retro-contemporary” the photography and the digital editing looks great. The checklist is full of rookies, just like the product says it is, and it spares nobody. The only downside to that is that you may pull a dud for your autograph, but for $20 you are guaranteed an autograph and some rookie cards, much better than you may find in a blaster box at the store. Overall, it’s definitely a product that is worth the $20 gamble.

PS: Remember, if you chose to purchase this online at ShopTopps, make sure to pick the USPS option for shipping to save a ton.

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Review: 2011 Upper Deck University of Texas Football

  By Sports Card Blog | January 15, 2012 - 6:04 pm | ,
7 Comments

The other half of the Red River Rivalry has a set of their own produced by Upper Deck this season. Are you a fan of the ‘Horns? Do you configure your fingers in the shape of a steer’s horns every Saturday? Is burnt orange your color of choice for random household items? Then 2011 Upper Deck University of Texas football may be the perfect product for you.

But is it worth your dime? Upper Deck was nice enough to send over a box of this product to review for everyone out there. What is inside is a little history lesson on the University of Texas football program and how they became a powerhouse winning multiple national titles. Remember, after this group of Upper Deck reviews we will have a giant contest featuring cards from all the breaks. I like to show my appreciation. But here’s what we pulled:

Design:

I am giving this the same rating as the Oklahoma product. Same layout, same design, pretty much same everything just in burnt orange. Here’s what I had to think about the design for the Oklahoma product review. “The design is neither great nor terrible. It feels kind of redundant with everything having the (Texas) colors, but then again, it is an all (Texas) product. I really love the UT Icons insert cards that are the hardest to pull in a box as you only get two of them. Those inserts alone bumped it up a little bit from a completely average 3 stars. I’m not a fan of the dual and triple cards that they feature, but the singles all look pretty good. I understand trying to fill out a product based on only one school and it must have been quite the task. I just think it could of looked a little better. Upper Deck has very talented designers, this isn’t one of their best.”

Checklist:

This product featuring Texas suffers from the same issues as the Oklahoma counterpart. Again, an exert from my Oklahoma review. “The checklist is what frustrates me the most in this product. Okay, there are a ton of legendary (Texas) players that were great for the (Longhorns) and some great in the NFL. I don’t mind the players that were chosen. However, seeing those players pop up over and over and over and over again in different subsets is what frustrates me. Not only will you receive doubles of one card, you will find several of the same player repeatedly in a box. I can’t count how many (Vince Young) cards I pulled from this box. I could, I just don’t want to. It would depress me. (Young) was great, but seeing his name repeatedly isn’t.”

Value:

Now here’s the kicker of the whole sh-bang. This box was absolutely terribly collated. Same amount of cards and cards per pack as the Oklahoma product. Except this time I didn’t fill a complete base set. I also had 43 duplicates of cards compared to about half of that in the Oklahoma product. Want to know what else? THERE WASN’T AN AUTOGRAPH! I know the box states there is “1 autograph on average per box” but an average of 1 usually means there is 1. Even the sellers of this product online guarantee an autograph per box. I got 0. Luckily this product is only $40 and you get a ton of cards. But the lack of a hit is generally seen as inexcusable in this hobby. Should probably give this a lower score, but it’s only $40 and there is really a large number of cards.

Overall:

I don’t know how or why this product is worse overall than the Oklahoma counterpart. Well I do, but it should be pretty much equal in all ways to that product. It’s not. The design and the checklist is pretty much the same as far as my opinions go, but somehow the value just got extremely screwed up. I don’t know if this is an issue with the boxes themselves or maybe the teams? Was the Oklahoma box just collated right? Is the Texas box typical? It’s sad that these products aren’t the same. I can try and contact Upper Deck on the issue and see what they say, but sometimes it’s the luck of the draw. This Texas box must have been some extremely bad luck then.

A big thanks to Upper Deck for providing this box for review. You can find them on their official website, official blog, or their Facebook or Twitter pages.

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