I havent had a lot of time lately to update my site, as having a baby at home combined with a crazy work / life balance issue doesnt translate well to blogging. That being said, this product release has been quite intriguing.

Going back to 2016, Encased was a fucking dumpster fire in my opinion. Ugly cards, goofy posed photos everywhere, and a crazy expensive box price was horrendous. Yet, much like we see Panini do on a regular basis, they brought it back. Much to my surprise, the product has improved significantly, not because the posed photos are gone, but because Panini seems to be making this a product driven by inscriptions.

Check out some of the bigger cards:

2017 Panini Encased Patrick Mahomes Inscription Auto BGS 9.5

2017 Panini Encased Alvin Kamara Inscription Auto BGS 9.5

2017 Panini Encased Mitchell Trubisky Cap Patch Auto BGS 9

2017 Panini Encased Leonard Fournette Dual Relic Auto BGS 9.5

It really begs the ultimate question. Can something like unique autograph content deliver a reason to open a product that I would normally stay FAAAAAR away from?

To a degree the answer is yes, because I think inscriptions are still special enough that it can bring some additional reasons to rip through boxes you wouldnt normally rip through. Even though the photos are still so, so, so fucking bad, they really speak to the side of me that may forgive them somewhat for choosing that direction.

Considering that each rookie can sign almost 30,000 autographs a year, its time to spend some of that time delivering autograph content that isnt the norm. Because players dont always know what to do when asked for inscriptions, it can be very difficult to generate this type of content. That’s why, when done well, its super special. Its also a reason why Panini shouldnt waste the concept on a set like Encased, especially considering how important it is for them to continue to keep the idea sacred enough to generate value above and beyond.

At some point, I hope that a premium release like this morphs to showcase some great looking cards that also use inscriptions as the primary vehicle to deliver autographs (as best as can be done with the players). More importantly, try to move away from graded box hits, as so many of the grades did not deliver gem or even mint grades across the product. Because cards are thick stock and signed on card, players’ handling them to sign the autographs almost ensures that grades wont be where they need to be. Although I understand the concept, I find it to be overkill against a set that really could benefit from extra cost generated through grading being delivered into the content instead.

There is a LOT of potential in Encased, but it was fucking wasted in 2016, and borderline lost in 2017. So much could be done to make this a keystone product for Panini, and instead its a forgotten release that seems to get lost among the super premium space that invades the NFL offseason.