After seeing the preview for 2016 Certified Football, I am walking away with one quesiton:

WHAT THE FUCK IS PANINI DOING WITH THEIR TOP BRANDS?

That’s about it. You would think they would want to invest in their legacy products, but nope, they leave them to rot with the worst designs around:

2015 Certified Marcus Mariota Auto patch /5

2015 Certified Jameis Winston Auto patch /15

2015 Certified Amari Cooper Auto /10

2015 Certified Todd Gurley Auto /10

For the last few years, Panini has run their most important brands of the year into the ground, or in the case of Elite, just took it off the calendar all together. With 2016 so far, they have done nothing to show they are interested in creating good looking trading cards, instead opting for lazy design work with even worse thematic choices for the programs.

I havent even gotten around to writing a preview for Gala, but holy fuck balls, that shit is ugly. Of course, Gala means about as much to football as Johnny Manziel means to the Cleveland Browns at this point, so its not as big of a deal when they set that product ablaze before it even hits the production line.

Certified on the other hand, has been around for over a decade, and though it has delivered some of the most hideous examples of modern card design in history, people love it. Sometimes a blind squirrel finds a nut, and they get something right, but not in the last few years.

Panini is obsessed with two things in the way they build their cards, and both of them make me sick. Sick that they were given the reigns for my favorite sport, and sick that even with a guide dog, this blind squirrel is still starving for visual appeal. They love separated areas for each element of the card and those goofy ass posed pictures. You can imagine why they need Fathers Day and Black Friday to clear product now.

Much like the rest of the products they do during this time of year, Certified is a certified disaster. The main box hits look terrible. They used a big white box to house the sticker, which is being used instead of on card for the 19th product in a row for them. Aside from a lack of hard signed autographs, the card looks like the player is being sliced off at the waist. I have no idea why anyone thinks this looks good, as a faded area would be much easier to stomach. Alas, this is the way Panini builds their shit, and it bothers the hell out of me.

The fabric of the game looks better than last year, as does the gold team, but considering how much of a dumpster fire they were over the last few years, Im not sure that says much about the product’s potential.

Panini will literally put out 20 of these types of sets this year, and all 20 will not be good. I can already tell you that. If it isnt a super premium product that is designed by the basketball team, the cards will be shit. That’s just the way it works. Topps had their duds too, but they rarely fucked up twice in a row. If something didnt work, they axe it, with Fire being the only exception to the rule.

I can assure you that I am inching ever closer to giving up on football all together, and I dont think I am alone in saying that. The days of Upper Deck and Topps are gone, and here we are, left with the garbage. Someone needs to take it out to the curb, because it smells to high hell.

Every year, prospectors and team collectors look forward to the release of Bowman baseball, mainly because of the potential of pulling the top chase cards in the hobby. Low numbered parallels in the set can sell for thousands or even tens of thousands as history has shown. There is no other set not named Exquisite that carries this sort of aura, and this year’s Bowman set is no different. In fact, someone pulled and listed one of the biggest cards available in the Kenta Maeda Bowman Superfractor Auto 1/1.

Funny enough, its not even close to the only card that is going to break the 1k mark, something that is awesome for a box that costs less than 100 bucks:

2016 Bowman Yoan Moncada Orange Shimmer Auto /10

2016 Bowman Ultimate Prospect Auto – 24 players /10

2016 Bowman Kenta Maeda Gold Refractor Auto /50

2016 Bowman Dansby Swanson Orange Refractor Auto /10

2016 Bowman Alex Bregman Gold Refractor Auto /50

I love watching Bowman sales, as its like people watching at the local tourist trap. Every so often you see someone walk by that just makes your jaw drop. Sales on some of the main prospect cards are much like that, with some so high it makes you wonder how someone could drop that kind of money on someone with no MLB experience. With the flame out rate of prospects as high as it is, prospecting has become as risky of a venture as ever.

That still doesnt mean people wont shell out big bucks for a guy they are collecting – even if he isnt among the top prospects in the set. That’s what makes this so much fun to observe. I dont see other mid range products generating this type of attention, especially when the Bowman name is attached to so many products each year.

As much as I want to believe that Yoan Moncada is the best thing to play for the Red Sox since David Ortiz, I just cant help but think about all those guys who have been worth as much with so little on their resume. Although, to be fair, I doubt the people who buy these cards are spending money so far outside their price range either. When the Moncada super eventually hits, that’s going to be where things really get nuts.

Overall, Bowman remains a spectacle of a sort that rarely exists in the hobby any longer. We need these types of things to continue, as I see the target market as a shrinking resource, not something that growing. Ill support the reckless spending of people as long as its contributing to more collectors buying Bowman as a result. For right now, that looks like the case.

The gamblers in all of us want to pull the slot machine lever at 60 bucks a pop and hit the jackpot. That pie in the sky mentality is what drives a lot of us to break wax, but as we see with Bowman it actually happens quite a few times.

I love the draft. Its my favorite event of the year other than the Super Bowl, mainly because there is so much that goes on and so much action. Aside from some horrible things that happened to Laremy Tunsil last night, I would say it was one of the more interesting first rounds of recent years. Starting the night with two QBs isnt a bad thing either.

Jared Goff

Pick: 1
Hobby Potential (2016): High
Hobby Potential (Long Term): Fair to Good
Hobby Pick Grade: B

The hobby loves quarterbacks, especially quarterbacks that are taken number one. Its a distinction that gets you extra love from the collectors, and Goff will be getting some nice values as a result. I personally dont think he is going to be the next big thing or even a top guy, but this is the era we are in. Teams think they need QBs at the expense of everything else. The Rams arent all that great of a team, and that is going to hurt his development too. Going to be interesting how he does.

2016 Contenders Draft Jared Goff Auto Ticket

2016 Leaf Metal Draft Jared Goff Black Refractor Auto /15

2016 Score Jared Goff Artists Proof Auto /25

Carson Wentz

Pick: 2
Hobby Potential (2016): High
Hobby Potential (Long Term): Fair to Good
Hobby Pick Grade: B+

For some reason, people like Carson Wentz more than Jared Goff right now, and its a bit odd. Both of the two top guys were looking to be rated similarly, and may end up being interchangeable for the rest of the year as a result. Its not like Goff was miles ahead. Like Goff, I dont see a huge reason to dump all sorts of praise on Wentz as the future of the Eagles, but at least they look to be on a better track than they were with Chip at the helm.

2016 Leaf Metal Draft Carson Wentz Blue Refractor Auto /50

2016 Score Carson Wentz Gold Zone Auto /25

2016 Leaf Ultimate Carson Wentz Black Auto /10

Ezekiel Elliott

Pick: 4
Hobby Potential (2016): High
Hobby Potential (Long Term): Good
Hobby Pick Grade: A

This is a great, great, great situation for football cards. Widely collected team gets who is likely the most widely hyped prospect. Although RBs have little value in the hobby these days, Gurley showed that rookie seasons can be fun for collectors. I see a big drop off in his cards after this year, as second year RB cards NEVER sell. The position is a black hole for hobby value these days, and that is sad. Elliott is not as good as Gurley, but he should be a fun player to watch behind the best Offensive Line in the league.

2016 Contenders Ezekiel Elliott Bowl Auto /99

2016 Leaf Ezekiel Elliott Gold Auto /25

Corey Coleman

Pick: 15
Hobby Potential (2016): Fair
Hobby Potential (Long Term): Low
Hobby Pick Grade: D+

Ahhhhh Cleveland. Thanks for taking a WR and ruining his collecting appeal. Its not that there arent Browns collectors out there, its just that no one has confidence that they can develop anyone of worth. Coleman has talent to be a good WR, but does anyone believe RGIII is going to find the magic pill that reverts his body and mind to 2012? Even if Coleman turns out to have nice production, at best I see him as another Mike Evans type guy in the hobby.

2016 Leaf Metal Corey Coleman Gold Refractor 1/1

2016 Contenders Draft Corey Coleman Cracked Ice /23

Will Fuller

Pick: 21
Hobby Potential (2016): Fair
Hobby Potential (Long Term): Fair to Good
Hobby Pick Grade: B-

Im not quite sure why Houston wanted to pick a WR over some of the other desperate needs they have, but when you overpay for a QB like they did with Osweiler, I guess you have to surround him with weapons to make it less likely he is going to suck. The issue is that DeAndre Hopkins is the number 1 in Houston, and that means Will Fuller is just going to be used like Mike Wallace was in Pittsburgh. He is a speedster, and he might not get much of a look outside of that for a few years.

2016 Score Will Fuller Auto Showcase RC

2016 Leaf Metal Draft Will Fuller Red Refractor Auto /5

Josh Doctson

Pick: 22
Hobby Potential (2016):Good
Hobby Potential (Long Term): Fair to Good
Hobby Pick Grade: A-

I really like Doctson. Its really too bad, because I HATE THE REDSKINS. He is going to be the best receiver in the class, and it is really shitty that he is going to a team that I cant stand. The main issue with Doctson is not his skill, but that he has a TERRIBLE signature, and that will hurt his long term value in some ways. I think this guy will be one of the main sleepers of this class. You watch.

2016 Prizm Draft Josh Doctson Purple Flash Auto

2016 Score Josh Doctson Purple Auto /25

Laquon Treadwell

Pick: 23
Hobby Potential (2016): Fair to Good
Hobby Potential (Long Term): Fair to Good
Hobby Pick Grade: B+

I was very happy with this pick, obviously. Vikings are a widely collected team, and Treadwell looks like a good receiver to pair with Teddy and Stefon Diggs. That being said, he isnt going to have the long TDs or be a focus as long as Peterson is around, so that could limit his production for the first couple of years. The Vikings are a dink and dump team in the passing game, and hopefully Treadwell will give them some good receptions in that respect.

2016 Score Laquon Treadwell Blue Auto /50

2016 Leaf Ultimate Laquon Treadwell Gold Auto /50

Paxton Lynch

Pick 26
Hobby Potential (2016): Good to High
Hobby Potential (Long Term): Good
Hobby Pick Grade: A

Here is something everyone needs to know. Lynch is not going to play in 2016 barring injury. He may not play in 2017. He is a project with major upside, and a great potential to eventually be a popular player. That means his cards are going to slump, and collectors hate waiting. If you have Lynch’s cards, now is the time to sell if you dont want to wait that amount of time. The reason I gave this an A is because by the time everyone gets he isnt going to play, we will already be most of the way through the year. The Broncos are a popular team and that will mean a lot of bump for his value.

2016 Leaf Metal Draft Paxton Lynch Blue Auto /50

2016 Contenders Paxton Lynch Bowl Ticket Auto /99

I still think this class could end up being a dud, but with some of the teams added now, maybe not as much. I guess we will have to see.

Today is a big day for Baseball cards, as the yearly Bowman set hits shelves with a splash. With some rookies in the set already making waves, this is shaping up to be a very interesting year of the product, especially with the debut of Kenta Maeda's chrome RCs.

Here are some of the bigger hits already up:

2016 Bowman Chrome Kenta Maeda Blue Refractor Auto RC

2016 Bowman Chrome Kenta Maeda Base Auto RC

2016 Bowman Alex Bregman Orange Refractor Auto RC /25

2016 Bowman Ivan Rodgriguez Chrome Retro Auto Red Refractor /5

2016 Bowman Victor Robles Purple Refractor Auto RC

The last time we had a big rookie from Asia hit the league, he refused to sign any autographs for the card companies. Masahiro Tanaka hasnt really panned out 100% the way people thought, but he is still a nice piece for a Yankees team that is very popular among collectors. Maeda has had a tremendous start with only 1 earned run on his stat sheet through two starts. This makes his cards that much more desirable, especially with his international appeal. Bowman is the card everyone wants, and that is why this set is already garnering a lot of buzz.

Other prospects are going to be a focus as well, with Red Sox prospect Yoan Moncada making his Bowman debut, alongside guys like Alex Bregman and a second card of Dansby Swanson in his new Braves uniform. Others like Robles will also be a card that people clamor for, but with Bowman its all about the color.

It takes a village to make a product’s legacy solid, and Bowman has one of the most widespread followings in the hobby. BGS loves it too, because grading is almost intertwined with the set’s release. Prospectors spend hours combing through scouting reports and MILB stats to find their targets, and it creates an economy unlike anything we see in any other product or sport.

For me, I love seeing Bowman every year, just because the design is always one of the better ones that Topps does on an annual basis. This year's design is really cool looking, and not the usual approach that we see. The borders are a bit more hidden, and the design elements a bit more flashy than normal. Considering that Topps already took a modern approach to flagship, this should not be expected.

Bottom line, if you are a prospector, today is a national holiday. With the way prospects are continually chased among collectors, Bowman remains a beacon of future potential that continues to be a staple in the fabric of the hobby. This year’s set is another fine example of why the cards remain among the most coveted.