Everyone who has been reading the site over the last few days has seen how much I have dissected the botched set that Panini is labeling as Contenders. Its really no better than many of the other trash they put out, just with a logo that makes people drop money they shouldnt drop. Slap another logo on this product and it heads straight to the bargain bin
to join it’s brothers and sisters. Contenders has a legacy, an undeserved one at that, but its still a legacy.
The Good
As I have mentioned before, the Rookie Ink set looks really good. It should have been the ticket design, and that’s no freaking joke. Not only does it have a ticket style presentation, but its a good ticket style presentation
. Im pretty sure someone at Panini fucked up with the same reckless abandon that they usually show, so it doesnt surprise me that this dumb ass move was made.
Here is what I mean:
2014 Contenders Mike Evans Rookie Ink Auto
2014 Contenders Sammy Watkins Rookie Ink Auto
2014 Contenders Johnny Manziel Auto Rookie Ink
I also like the Rookie of the Year Contenders set, as the design is functionally laid out in a much more visual appealing fashion. The issue I have outside of design is what happens when you get an autograph in this set that is not Odell Beckham? When Beckham wins the ROY, does it devalue the rest of the cards in this set? I dont know, but at least they look good.
Here is what they look like:
2014 Contenders Teddy Bridgewater Rookie of the Year Auto
2014 Contenders Jimmy Garroppolo Rookie of the Year Auto
Although the player himself is a joke, its cool to see more buy backs in Contenders. This needs to happen with more frequency and with better players who didnt get the real ticket treatment. Hell, even if they did, its still worth having more on card autos from non-rookies. The Sherman RC auto from last year still remains a top card to chase
.
It should be noted that the NFL Ink set looks cool, but I am wholly against calling a sticker set "INK" in any way shape or form.
The Bad
Im sure you are wondering why I would be putting the ticket design in this part of the post, instead of the last part – considering my reaction. There are so many other horrible parts of this set that I had no choice. Basically, the ticket design is a crime scene of design flaws
, including a general lack of attention to what made Contenders’ top card what it is. For a card that is called a ticket, it has no discernible elements of a ticket look
, and that’s just the start.
First off, we get the typical bullshit that Panini is infamous for using in a nauseating fashion. GIANT TEXT? Check. Huge logo? Check. Separated area for a signature? Check. Its all there. Even worse, now that one of my readers mentioned that the logo and text is not centered on the card, I cant unsee it. Its just a noticeable tad to the left. The anal card collector in me cringes a little more each time I see it.
The Ugly
The variations in this set are so bad that im pretty sure they are being added to the ballot in 32 states to be criminalized for possession. Not only are there now so many that its impossible to keep them straight, but each variation has its own parallel structure. As far as I can tell, that would mean that each has its own cracked ice and 1/1s? I have no idea. The fact that we have to think like that makes it even more stupid
.
Funny as all the parallels might be, it means that Panini cranked the shit out of the production run this year, and that doesnt even factor in retail. The only good thing is that many of the top rookies have a lot of autos, although value will be hurt by that more than helped.
Panini also found it worthwhile to add studio shots to one of the variations, and I cannot even put into words how retarded that decision is. Wait, let me try.
“Panini has their heads so far up their own asses, that they fail to realize how much of a dumpster fire each card with a studio shot becomes. I would rather watch offensive lineman play quarterback in the Super Bowl than collect these horrid excuses for trading cards. We are all dumber for having to endure this stupidity, they are awarded no points, and may god have mercy on their souls.”
Nope, still not enough.
Adding to the pain of getting cards like described above in your box break, is getting rewards points in 7-8 boxes of every case. It allows them to say, “HOLY SHIT YOU GET 6 AUTOS PER BOX! MOJOZ!”, when in reality its the equivalent of giving a collector something worse than a redemption. Currently collectors still have to pay for their cards to be shipped to them, and for 150 points you can buy nothing of worth
. Even if you save all your cards, and accumulate a ton of points, enjoy your Michael Floyd score auto.
Points cards cost nothing to produce and allows them to market their product as having added value and content. It is nothing of the sort. Even if you were to pull a scrub auto instead, there are set builders who might need that card. Instead you are left with a reach-around handy that basically serves as a reminder you didnt get what you thought you were getting.
Bottom line, this year’s Contenders is not the worst its ever been, but it might as well be. With such a deep class, this is the kind of shit that this set is known for. Instead we are left holding our dicks and praying that someone at the NFL will realize they made a huge mistake in giving them the exclusive, and determine the money isnt worth it. Its getting to the point where I would rather no one produce football cards than Panini.
Firstly, I’ve been reading your blog for years now and want to thank you for being one of the very few thoughtful and well-written card blogs. However, I need to disagree with your extreme criticism of this product. I’ve opened nearly every NFL product this calendar year, and I think Contenders is the strongest one yet. You get on average 5-6 autos per box, of which 2 or more seem on card, and I think that is solid value for money. I think the Rookie Ticket design is fine the way it is – clean and attractive – and the fact that it doesn’t resemble a real ticket seems a very minor gripe. The variations, I agree, are confusing, but it adds to the interest level of the product every year. Most importantly, I think it’s a fun product – my brother and I had a blast opening it. Let’s be honest, many of Panini’s products this year were dogs, but Topps had more of their share too (i.e. Bowman Chrome, Topps Chrome). I really think Contenders was decent though, but that’s just my opinion. Thanks for the read.
Adam,
I can not question your eye for what makes a card look great and your critic of poor design. You are much better than I am at judging card design. However, when it comes to product financial performance, word from my customers and distributors is this is the best Contenders Football ever. My customers are busting boxes, selling singles on eBay and coming back for more Contenders Football.
With 6 autos (we have seen 7 autos in 5 of our boxes) per $130 box, Contenders gives buyers a real good chance to hit a big one. And, the valuable rookies are easy to get. I’ve seen 10 Sammy Watkins, 8 Blake Bortles, 4 Odell Beckham, 5 Mike Evans, 3 Teddy Bridgewater, 1 Johnny Manziel pulled in our store. We are seeing a lot of numbered versions with as many as 8 cracked ice coming out of one case. One box had two cracked iced #d/22.
I know you hate the rewards points cards. We are seeing 4 to 7 per case. On several occasions, I have had the opportunity to talk to Mr. Mark Warsop one-on-one. Last time we spoke, he said Panini would soon have some high value, worthwhile items to redeem with the Rewards Points. While it is taking longer than I hoped, I believe it will soon happen. I believe there will be an announcement at The Las Vegas Industry Summit in March.
How many times have you pulled an autograph you couldn’t sell for 99 cents on eBay? The 150 Rewards Points are selling for about $4 and sometimes more.
Bottom line evaluation of a product for me as a retailer is WHAT A CUSTOMER TELLS ME THEY ARE WILLING TO PAY FOR A PRODUCT. 2014 Contenders Football sells quickly for $130 per box ($22 profit for me or about 17%). 2014 Topps Chrome is slowly selling at $42 per box ($14 LOSS for me or 25% LOSS). Topps Valor, Topps Prime, Topps Platium, Topps Triple Threads, Bowman Chrome are all loosing money. Customers have spoken.
Im getting sick of all these come about panini getting better cards soon for rewards. What’s the excuse for not having them available now? Do you really trust an employee saying how awesome their own product will be? Finally, if everyone is hoarding points than once good cards are available the masses will claim them quickly and its back to junk.