NFL Sunday Double Header - a TCDB trade and a boxed set

I wanted to open a new pack of cards to celebrate the Pack returning to the playoffs for the first time in three years.. but I didn't have the urge to go to Target for retail blasters. Instead I'll unpack an old team set and show off some Legends of the Green & Gold. 

This set was released in 1997, after the Packers' third Super Bowl victory. Back then I gobbled up any Green Bay item I could find. This set is opened, but I've kept it in a safe place away from my main card collection. Now that I've got some 4-pocket pages I think I'll scan 'em up here and store them with the rest of my irregular-sized cards.

But first I have a TCDB trade to discuss. I rarely write about TCDB trades because I make bunches of them and they are usually 5-10 cards each so that I can fit them in a PWE. (Also, there's just not enough time to scan and discuss every trade. I've had to double up on blogger thank you's as it is.) That said, I have to make an exception for TCDB user Noy.

As most of you know, I've been working on the 1986 Topps football set. I've got over 100 dupes due to a lot I purchased on eBay and a few TCDB trades that brought in condition upgrades. Most of the 44 cards I offered to Noy were in good shape, including a Bernie Kosar RC and a Walter Payton Team Leader card. But a few were off-center or otherwise flawed. Which is why I only asked for 30 cards in return:

I picked eight Packers and a couple of non-Packers Prizm singles. Allen Lazard is GB's #2 receiver although RB Aaron Jones has more receptions. These two RCs were the big-ticket items of the trade. 

14 of the 30 cards I received were 2019 Topps baseball set fillers, some of which were dinged. This is not Noy's fault, I've had quality control issues with 2019 Topps cards all year, from all sources. The stack included Cody Bellinger, Brock Holt, and a dozen guys that aren't worth mentioning or scanning. 

Here's the rest of the trade. Until recently (like three months ago) I never knew that the Red Sox once had a Dutch pitcher named Win. How cool is that? Oh.. I forgot. Wins don't matter anymore. He'd have to be called Fip or something to impress the Sabr crowd, lol.

These cards alone would have been a fair exchange for my stack of 1986 dupes. However, Noy must have seen the 44-30 card count and decided to even things out by sending a surprise batch of cards from my wantlist.

Some Sox, a Shooty, and an upgrade of the Quake Series card that I've had in my collection since 1990. You may see that Wally Joyner RC again when I post my Angels' All-Time team - which I've decided to restart four weeks from now in time for Spring Training. (29 days 'til pitchers & catchers report!)

Here's a couple of Spring Training photos, something Upper Deck was known for in their flagship sets. I miss their baseball issues almost as much as I miss Topps football and hockey sets.

More unannounced cards from Noy, bringing the total to 53. Now I feel bad that I sent my rejected set fillers. I will have to make it up to him in a future trade. Thank you Noy!


Now let's get back to the Pack. There are 20 cards in this boxed set, including a checklist:

 Coach and General manager(!) cards. 

Upper Deck included some players who contributed to the team's return to glory - but weren't exactly legends:

This is more like it:

LeRoy Butler is a finalist for this year's Hall of Fame election. He's up against some other strong safeties including Troy Polamalu, Steve Atwater, and John Lynch - and judging from this picture LeRoy appears to be a long shot. Hopefully he'll get in to Canton one day.

There's no doubt about Brett Favre's legendary status. It must have taken the selection committee all of two seconds to debate his Canton candidacy.

Don Majkowski and Lynn Dickey were also Packers quarterbacks. The '2' on the Majkowski card is missing some foil. I have to assume it was always missing, but the scan on TCDB shows the 2 is intact so maybe I wrecked it somehow?

Here's a pair of prolific pass catchers. If Upper Deck were releasing this set today Donald Driver would have to be included. Of course if this set were released today Panini would be producing it and the backs would have no text or information other than the player's name. 

Bryce Paup played five seasons with Green Bay and made one Pro Bowl. Ted Hendricks equaled Paup's Pro Bowl total in his lone season with the Packers. This checklist is baffling.

The rest of the cards are legit Packer Greats. Willie Davis and Ray Nitschke were two Hall of Fame defensive stars of the Vince Lombardi era. (not featured in this set: Vince Lombardi.)

Cards number 1 and 5 feature Hall of Famers Forrest Gregg and Willie Wood (not featured in this set: number 15, Hall of Famer Bart Starr)

We'll close out this set with Paul Hornung biting his lip and Don Hutson holding a coin. I know Hutson played a long time ago, but did Upper Deck not have any photos of his playing days? Or at least his Hall of Fame Ceremony?

Also, Jim Taylor was excluded along with Starr, Lombardi, and Jerry Kramer among many others. The cards themselves are really nice. I just wish that Upper Deck, Topps, or another card company still had a license to produce a complete 100-card set documenting the 100-year history of the Green Bay Packers. I guess this oversized yet undersized set from 1997 will have to do. 


Thanks for reading. Enjoy the games today, and GO PACK GO!!!

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