Is this a dream? Am I asleep? Is Panini really coming out with a mid range product that looks good and might be worth buying? Holy shit, someone call down to Hell, because its likely they are getting some freezing temperatures down there right now. Prior to it being removed from the calendar last year, Limited suffered in a similar way to how both Absolute and Prestige are suffering. It was outdated, insanely ugly, and the format really didnt make sense. Most of all collectors wrote it off much the same way that they did with the other shitty mid range products that Panini makes.

Limited has had its fair share of horrid looking cards:

2014 Panini Limited Brandin Cooks Jumbo Patch Auto

2013 Panini Limited Geno Smith Jumbo Patch Auto

2011 Panini Limited Cam Newton Phenoms Auto Patch

2012 Panini Limited Sam Bradford Jumbo Patch Auto

This year, things look different, and that is good. The design is better, the autographs are finally on card again, and the product looks pretty classy overall. Im not sure if there is one dude in the office that designed Impeccable and Limited, but if there is a dude or a few dudes, they need to be responsible for EVERYTHING that Panini does for the rest of the year.

All in all, I think Panini has crippled the market with forgettable disturbingly unattractive sets, and its getting to the point were 9 out of 10 respondents to a impromptu poll on Blowout say they are buying 50% less football this year over last year. If you arent going to bring something good looking to the market, and its not innovative either, that’s a major issue. MAJOR.

Limited isnt really all that innovative at all, but at least it looks good. It feels like 2009 era Upper Deck more than anything, and that is a very good thing. You could honestly slap an SP Authentic logo on this stuff and I wouldnt be able to tell the difference. The fact that Panini seems to be stealing from the success playbook is really cool, because they are so absolutely terrible at building from scratch. I hope we get more and more stuff like this, but Im not holding my breath. Two products does not a calendar make.