Here we go, the first NFL product of Panini’s new NFL exclusive license! Is it going to be good? Is it going to be valuable? What is it?

Hooray…… for….. SCORE? What the fuck?

Last week, Panini released a sell sheet for a product that in no way has been successful at all during its run in the NFL. Not only that, but like every goddamn product they make, many of the cards in the product will be NCAA focused. Funny enough, this is the type of thing that people should get used to. Because Panini has such high requirements to hit for the NFL, NFLPA, and NCAA, they are going to be forced into bringing back old shit bombs from previous years. They have yet to really build a reliable brand from scratch in football since, well National Treasures in 2006, and that isnt exactly the best track record for the team. Sure, they have Flawless, and Immaculate, but those are not native football products created by their staff. Those are all fall back designs that were created by the basketball team. The football team has shit like Score.

There have been some bad Score cards over the last few years, check these out:

2015 Score Jameis Winston Red Zone Auto /20

2015 Score Hot Rookies Odell Beckham Auto Blue Foil

2013 Score Eddie Lacy 1989 Score Throwback Anniversary Auto

2012 Score Kirk Cousins Auto RC

2011 Score AJ Green Hot Rookies Auto

In all honesty, the base doesnt look bad. None of the cards, save the hilarious attempt at a Roethlisberger autograph and the Cam Newton eye sore, look terrible. The problem is that it wont matter in the slightest. They are going to crank up the presses to run at double speed, and this product will be 20 dollars a box by the time the season starts. Not only that, but it looks like the main autographs of the set are NCAA uniforms for second year players? That makes no fucking sense at all, and it shows that Panini has their heads so far up their own ass, that they are seeing what their products look like through the lining of their intestines.

Last year, Score was a 100% retail product and a bad one at that. The last time Score was a hobby product it was Hot Rookies, or what I named as one of the worst products of the modern era. The cards were printed as the Score brand, and then Panini went back and foil stamped the Hot Rookies logo over the existing cards. It was so haphazard that you can actually see the score logo that is under all that wonderful foil. Not only did it look terrible with its retouched shots of players on the bench, but it was below dealer cost the second the artificial price controls were removed. I still laugh whenever I see someone post a break.

Get ready people, this is going to be a fun year for all of us people that see Panini for what they really are. Losers.

Every so often there comes a design that just makes you cringe. It either is composed like a jpg from MS Paint, it uses terrible composition, or it just hits all the wrong notes. The cards in Panini's Super Bowl 50 promo are worse than all of that. Its not as ugly as Spectra, but it is pretty damn close.

Here are the live cards, and yes, for some god forsaken reason, people are bidding:

2016 Panini Super Bowl Promo Jameis Winston Auto Patch

2016 Panini Super Bowl Promo Russell Wilson Private Signings /4

2016 Panini Super Bowl Promo Blake Bortles Private Signings 1/1

2016 Panini Super Bowl Promo Thomas Rawls Private Signings /25

2016 Panini Super Bowl Promo Tony Romo Private Signings /10

Here is the thing about working with stickers, a concept Panini just never fucking understands. If you are going to use stickers, you cant use dark backgrounds. You just cant. If a dark background is chosen, a lighter colored box has to be put behind the sticker, or you wont be able to see the autograph. This OBVIOUS concept did not seem to phase their design team, as that is exactly what they did.

I just dont understand how someone with any intelligence can design a black backround sticker auto card with a straight face.

Not only do the cards look like someone blindly designed the layout, but they are coupled with boxes that are purchased at more than double the market price. Yes, in order to get this trash, someone had to buy full price boxes of Prizm Draft, Crown Royale, or other products. Try to contain your laughter for a second. Yes, there are many people who thought this promo was worth buying shitty cards, just so that you could get free shitty cards with it. Great call. Way to go smart people!

I dont really have much else to say, because its rare that I shit on free stuff. Im sorry, but I just couldnt help myself here. They could have at least made an effort to make the cards look good. Those white boxes alone just send me straight for the eye wash.

Ill start off by saying that I liked the design of 2015 Prizm Football. I think the cards were simple and worked well. I actually didnt think that Prizm draft looked HORRIBLE either. That being said, Prizm draft picks from last year cannot be categorized as anything other than a giant fucking train wreck. Aside from the odd way the product was released, it is now selling at about 1/3 of MSRP, and falling. Boxes are literally being given away at less than 30 bucks a pop.

Here are some examples of sticker heaven:

2015 Prizm Draft Jameis Winston Auto

2015 Prizm Draft Marcus Mariota Auto BGS 9.5

2015 Prizm Draft Todd Gurley Gold Refractor Auto

2015 Prizm Draft Tom Brady Alumnus Auto 1/1

In all of Panini’s infinite wisdom, they have inexplicably decided to bring it back in the same format, only this time with 100x uglier looking cards. Its worth mentioning that Panini will have to release stuff like this all year, alongside new products they will have to build rapidly just to hit minimum guarantees. They are expected to put out 31 plus NFL products per year, and that doesnt even begin to talk about the NCAA ones that are also necessary. When I see what this product looks like, god help us all.

I see ABSOLUTELY no reason to believe that this will end up anywhere but the bottom of the bargain bin, or used as supports for the buckets of tears cried by people who know what Football is in for over the next few years. I would even expect that the print run of this product is going to be built to support the eventual closeout of the remaining unsold wax, something that enrages local shops and buyers.

Most importantly, here we are again with another sticker based pre-draft product. While companies like Leaf and Upper Deck have and will be releasing hard signed sets, Panini seems to be allergic to on card autographs. In fact, I believe Leaf has their first on card product hitting shelves later this month. They may have smaller print runs, but they also seem to be on top of things better than anyone. Oh, and they have Tom Brady.

Lastly, I dont even need to really comment on the designs, because the pictures speak for themselves. Its garbage at best, and at worst, it will turn out to be a bigger fucking disaster than 2015. Panini is going to be the only licensed game in town for football this year, and look at the eye sore they decide to trot out. Visual diarrhea. I am already nauseous over this year, and this doesnt help me chew back the vomit at all.

Im sad. Football season is over, and now I have to endure almost 6 months of football-less despair as I wait for the 2016 season. Regardless of the pending wasteland of the summertime, Super Bowl 50 did have some major hobby players involved, and I was excited to see how everything played out. This may have been the last hurrah for a few guys, and its time to talk through some of the legacies that were made or diminished by last night’s game.

Peyton Manning

There may not be a more iconic football card than the 1998 Contenders Manning Auto Ticket. It is the a card that single handedly established a brand that has lasted through to today, without much else to show for the other years. Manning has been a great signer through his entire career, and his autographs are still worth a lot of money. When supply is high, and value remains in the top tier, you know a guy is among the greats. Winning last night did not help him. That is true. Losing last night may have hit his values temporarily, but I doubt the long term impact would have been major. A guy who owns all the records in the book doesnt take a hit over a loss against the best team in the NFL.

2013 Topps Five Star Peyton Manning Inscription Auto

2013 Topps Supreme Peyton Manning Quad Patch Auto /10

2015 Topps Chrome Peyton Manning Base Auto SSP /10

Cam Newton

Unfortunately for the hobby, 2011 had some BAAAAAAAAAAD looking cards. When I say bad, I mean really really bad. Panthers' offensive line last night bad. Regardless of this terrible situation, Newton’s cards were obviously on fire these last few months. It was even more of a sustained burn, because unlike Kaepernick a few years back, he has always been a good player, a heisman winner, and a #1 overall pick. A down year wont relegate him to the bargain bin, and this stinger of a loss wont have a lasting impact on his base value. All that afterburner that was turned on over the last few months will fade, but its not like his cards are going to be worthless, ever. Even though his personality was not at its best yesterday, he is still going to be one of the most popular players in the league for years to come.

2011 Topps Chrome Cam Newton Atomic Auto /50 BGS 9.5

2011 Prime Signatures Cam Newton Auto /25

2011 Topps Five Star Cam Newton Rookie Auto /199

Von Miller

I dont think I have seen two performances in a row like we saw Miller have on the biggest stages that exist. First, he made Brady look like a rookie in the Championship game, and followed it up by basically winning this game for Denver. If Von Miller doesnt play, the Broncos dont win. The sad part is, defense doesnt sell in the hobby, unless your name is JJ Watt. There are a few guys who have residual value because they are future HOFers who dont sign much, but defense generally isnt the face of the franchise like Watt, Polamalu and Ray Lewis were. Miller will get a nice little bump for winning the MVP, and thankfully he is a GREAT player to sustain some of that bump later on. This wont be a Malcom Smith situation, and Miller could end up being on Watt’s level, if he isnt already, in terms of talent. Like Newton, he was a rookie during a terrible card year, and probably wont see far above 100 bucks for any of his normal rookie cards.

2011 Topps Chrome Von Miller Red Refractor Auto RC /5

2011 Crown Royale Von Miller Silhouette Auto Patch

John Elway

Believe it or not, Elway has been a hot topic over the last few weeks, and this Super Bowl was a testament to his legacy in the front office as much as it was his legacy overall. Elway being on stage to accept the trophy will have an impact on his value, especially as younger collectors are exposed to his persona. Like many HOFers who are still around the game, he signs a ton, but like Manning his value is still nice. I say he will get a slight bump for his “third” ring, although it isnt anything like it was when he won back to back as a player. Elway has one of the best stories, going out after winning a ring, and hopefully Manning does the same.

2014 National Treasures Peyton Manning / John Elway Dual Auto

2012 Elite John Elway /' Peyton Manning Dual Auto Passing the Torch

Again, I am sad the season is over, but feel this was a fitting culmination. Although it wasnt a shootout, it was still an interesting game, and was within one score for most of the second half. I kept waiting for the fireworks on the offensive side of the ball, but they came from the defense instead.

With a weak class likely on the cusp in 2016, I guess it isnt a bad thing to bask in 2015 for a while longer.

Since 2013, I have been a huge fan of this set. Not only does it offer premium content with on card autographs, but the design has been very well done over the years. It also features a card that has become so popular that many of the other companies are scrambling to rip it off. Hell, Panini made whole products out of ripoffs from Museum Collecction. Alas, this is the final year of the football set, and I am sad to see it go.

Bigger hits that have been posted so far:

2015 Museum Collection Emmitt Smith Gold Ink Framed Auto Inscription 1/1

2015 Museum Collection Amari Cooper Silver Ink Framed Auto /15

2015 Museum Collection Marcus Mariota Auto RC

2015 Museum Collection Jameis Winston Dual Patch Auto

The showstoppers in this are always the Metal Framed Autographs, which are some of the best cards Topps makes in football all year. Although there is no Brady this year, they have all the big names, including inscriptions on the 1/1s. These are cards I will always chase, and I really like the way they look with the added white at the bottom of the card. The checklist is pretty strong as always, and I guess I will relegate my chasing to baseball now that its sister product is done.

As for the other cards, I think they range from good to not so good in the way they look. Topps kind of went mega overboard with the black borders, and though it looks okay on some of the cards, others make it look like the player is getting attacked. They definitely tried some interesting parallels and some are worth the risk. Despite the pay off, I really liked the simple marble type background of previous years, and wish they had stayed in that vein instead of going all crazy.

The price tag on a product like this is always an issue for most, as the boxes can be very hit and miss. Its around the same price as triple threads, and you get on card autos in every box. You also have the chance at some really nice content with hard signed autos as well, so I dont see why this is so much less popular than garbage like Threads. The framed autos alone more than make up for the difference, but at one per case, they are severely tough to pull.

In the end, I doubt many people will remember Museum for more than the big case hits, but I dont think that is a bad thing. You know something is good when everyone wants it, and other companies try to rip it off. Hopefully this isnt the end of content like this in football, and I dont think Luxe or whatever shit Panini is trying to use is going to fill that gap.