Last week I listed the AFC's Franchise players from Score's 1993 and 2023 insert sets. Today we'll compare Score's picks for NFC teams then and now, starting in the North (because I can't put the Cowboys first, ever.)
Chicago Bears
I had thought that Richard Dent was at the end of his Hall of Fame career in 1993. Turns out I was half-right; Dent made his fourth and final Pro Bowl that season - his last as a starter - then signed with San Francisco for 1994. The jury is still out on Justin Fields as a viable starter, much less franchise player. However the rebuilding Bears don't have any All-Pro caliber players on their current roster.
Detroit Lions
Barry Sanders was the obvious choice for Detroit in 1993; I'm not even going to look at who else they had (shout-out Chris Spielman). Jared Goff might be the most underrated quarterback in football. He doesn't throw a ton of TD passes but he's a highly accurate passer and leader of the first-place Lions.
Green Bay Packers
We were one year away from the Packers having two non-quarterbacks on this list. Sterling Sharpe (who should be in the Hall of Fame) was an All-Pro in both 1992 and 1993, setting records for receptions in both seasons. Aaron Rodgers is one of two Franchise players in the 2023 Score set who are no longer with the depicted team. Aaron Jones and Christian Watson would have been my picks to succeed Pat McAfee's BFF, but they've been in and out of the lineup with injuries(Watson is currently sixth on the team in receptions.) I dunno... maybe GB's Franchise guy is Rashan Gary?
Minnesota Vikings
Did you guys watch the Secret Base series on the history of the Vikings? No one breaks down a long-suffering franchise's misery like Jon Bois & the boys (I do wish he'd finish up the 20020 story though.)
Anyway, Chris Doleman doesn't get talked about often enough for a guy with 150+ career sacks (5th all time since the stat was official). As someone who is supposed to hate this team, I'm envious of the Vikes' high-end talent over my 30+ years of watching football - from Doleman and John Randle to Randall Cunningham, Cris Carter and Randy Moss, to Jared Allen (who Secret Base didn't mention at all) to Adrian Peterson and Justin Jefferson - who was off to a stratospheric start to his career before a hamstring injury slowed him this season. I'm excited/scared to see him catch passes from someone who isn't Kirk Cousins in the near future.
I wrote way too much about the Vikings and not enough about the Lions. Maybe if the rest of the NFL would stop passing up all-time great talent in the draft and letting legends fall to Minnesota they wouldn't have so many Franchise caliber players. Which (if you click on the links) brings us to the...
Dallas Cowboys
I couldn't stand Emmitt Smith but there's no denying he was the MVP of the Dallas dynasty. The NFL's leading rusher in 1992 and 1993, Emmitt was NFL MVP the year this card was released despite scoring just 9 touchdowns. (He'd get his stat-padding 1-yard scores in bulk over the next two seasons.) Dak Prescott was certainly worthy of the Franchise tag in 2021 but seems to have hit his ceiling(he led the NFL in interceptions thrown last season). I might lean toward All-Pro linebacker Micah Parsons as the Star of the current Cowboys.
New York Giants
The Giants and Browns are the only two teams with running backs as franchise players in both '93 and '23. Rodney Hampton represented Big Blue in the 1992 Pro Bowl after scoring a career high 14 touchdowns and rushing for 1,141 yards. Lawrence Taylor was winding down his legendary career in 1993 and Score understandably saw Hampton as the Giants' star going forward. Saquon Barkley remains the lone bright spot of the NFL's most inept offense. Remember when Daniel Jones got that huge contract and Barkley didn't because the G-men thought he was the injury risk? Pepperidge Farm remembers.
Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles' defense had a formidable front line with Reggie White, Jerome Brown, and Clyde Simmons - all of whom were All-Pros in 1991 - before Brown passed away in 1992 and White left for Green Bay in '93. Simmons had led the NFL with 19 sacks in 1992 but was far less effective without White drawing double-teams. He departed for Arizona after the '93 campaign along with linebacker Seth Joyner - who would have also been a fine choice. Jalen Hurts nearly won a Super Bowl by himself and could lead the Iggles back to the big game this season. But that "tush push" bullshit is getting tired.
Washington Red Commanders Football Team
Here's the other team that traded their "franchise" player. Chase Young was shipped to San Francisco at the trade deadline (why is everyone trading high-ceiling stars to the fecking 49ers?) Due to injuries, Young had played just 11 games and registered 1.5 sacks in 2021-22 so I would have tabbed Terry McLaurin as the Commanders' Franchise player anyhow. Mark Rypien became the third different Washington QB to win a Super Bowl and earned MVP honors in their victory over the Bills. The 1992 season was a bit of a letdown for him and the Skins; 1993 was his last as a starter. Score could have gone with Darrell Green in hindsight, but Rypien was still seen as the leader of a contending team when 1993 Score hit shelves.
Fun fact, this card has been in my collection since pulling it from a pack 30 years ago. It's the only Score Franchise football card I managed to hold on to this whole time (I've also got a pack-pulled Al MacInnis insert from '93-94 Score Franchise hockey)
The South is next.... ugh...
Atlanta Falcons
Andre Rison began the 1990s with four consecutive Pro Bowl seasons - a streak that would end the year this card was released. The flamboyant star spent the second half of the decade bouncing between five different teams - though he did catch a 54-yard bomb from Brett Favre in Super Bowl XXXI. (Also, "Left Eye" Lopez from TLC burned his house down.)
Score's choice of Desmond Ridder as the Falcons' current Franchise player is... optimistic. Ridder and the Falcons' offense are in a similar position to Green Bay - they've got young, unproven playmakers in an offense led by a project quarterback who has yet to prove he can do the job. Atlanta is actually better positioned than the Pack because they've got a stud running back in Bijan Robinson and a stalwart offensive tackle who doesn't get hurt. Maybe Jake Matthews should be the Falcons' Franchise player?
Carolina Panthers---kind of?
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The Panthers did not play until 1995, so they obviously didn't have a Franchise player in 1993. Technically they're not represented in the 2023 set, either.
Carolina traded DJ Moore to the Bears to acquire the 1st overall pick in the 2023 Draft. Chicago gets the Cats' 1st-rounder in 2024 meaning they could have back-to-back picks at or near the top of the draft. It also means they technically have back-to-back cards in the 2023 Score Franchise insert set - which is equally as important :P
New Orleans Saints
The 1992-93 Saints had a killer linebacking crew with Hall of Famers Rickey Jackson and Sam Mills, along with 1991 and '92 All-Pro Pat Swilling. Jackson was never an All-Pro but he had suited up for the Saints since 1981 and set a career high in sacks with 13.5 in '92. He would leave the Big Easy for the 49ers in '94. NOLA also had a HOFer on offense - but Score would never name a kicker The Franchise. That's absurd.
Chris Olave had a nice rookie season and he's currently leading the team in receptions and yards - but he doesn't get into the end zone enough for a "franchise" wideout (just six times in 1.5 seasons so far.) Cam Jordan would be my pick; he has never missed a game in his 12+ seasons with the Saints, was named a Pro Bowler in each of the last six seasons, and has compiled 117.5 career sacks - not counting his latest takedown of Matt Ryan.
Bring back the creamsicles! The Bucs were still getting thrashed in the NFC "Norris" division in '93, when Reggie Cobb was named the team's Franchise player. Cobb was coming off a season in which he set career highs with 1,171 rushing yards and 9 scores. Vinny Testaverde was finally cut loose in the 1993 off-season and All-Pro Hardy Nickerson had just joined the team so Cobb was the only logical choice. Mike Evans hasn't been a Buccaneer as long as linebacker Lavonte David, but the four-time Pro Bowl wide receiver ranks top-3 among active pass catchers in yards and touchdowns.
We'll wrap this up out West.
Kyler Murray is still a Cardinal and may return to the active roster as soon as Sunday- but he's just keeping the seat warm for his successor at this point. Arizona appears ready to give him the Josh Rosen treatment in favor of their shiny new toy Caleb Williams - unless Murray can earn enough victories in the season's second half to lower their draft slot and they miss out on a franchise QB. What a bizarre situation this Franchise finds itself in.
Seven time All-Pro Aaron Donald is one of the last remaining Rams from their St. Louis years. He's also a future first-ballot Hall of Famer and the rare defensive player who card companies can't ignore. Cooper Kupp might have had this title briefly but otherwise the Rams have been Donald's team for a decade.
Hey, it's that team that all the stars of 1993 signed with in 1994 - and all the recent franchise players were traded to. Case in point - Christian McCaffrey, who the Niners acquired from Carolina midway through the 2022 season. CMC currently leads the NFL in rushing yards and is tied with former 49er Raheem Mostert for the league lead in total touchdowns. Like the Bears - who also traded with Carolina (stop trading your star players, Panthers!) - San Fran now has two players in the 2023 Franchise set: McCaffrey and Chase Young.
Steve Young was undoubtedly the 49ers' franchise star in the early-mid 1990s. The 1992 NFL MVP led the league in completion percentage, touchdown passes, and (lowest) interception rate in his first full year as the man in San Fran - and the first of three All-Pro seasons for the Hall of Famer.
Seattle was supposed to be in a similar situation last year after trading franchise icon Russell Wilson to the Broncos. However Geno Smith and the 12s played well above expectations. Dependable pass catcher D.K. Metcalf didn't make the All-Pro roster or even the Pro Bowl (Panini-Score doesn't seem to care about such things anymore) but he's the arguably the biggest name and playmaker on the Seahawks roster.
Who is the Franchise player on your favorite team? Do you disagree with any of these selections? Are there any "blast from the past" players you'd forgotten about?
Thanks for reading!
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More variety in position players in 1993. It was around 1999 or 2000 football card set eliminated Kickers, Offensive lineman and reduced the number of defensive players in the set.
ReplyDeleteWait...they made a card of "The Franchise" with a guy who isn't even on the team? That's nuts!
ReplyDeleteBarry Sanders. Man I miss watching him run.
ReplyDeleteHard to argue your pick for the Packers. Gary is solid... Kenny Clark is too. On offense... I think Doubs will shine if they can establish any kind of running game this season.
ReplyDeleteAs for Seattle... if Metcalf is there, Lockett should be an honorable mention. They're both solid wideouts. On the other side of the ball... the Hawks' linebacker corp of Wagner, Brooks, and Mafe are studs. But since the game is to pick only one... Metcalf works.
Never heard of anyone hating Emmit Smith. As a Giants fan I probably should have, but I don't remember anything bad about him except running through my team all the time.
ReplyDeleteSaquon missed some time earlier in the year. He still is a bad injury risk. But any QB is an injury risk if you refuse to give him an offensive line.
Seems like Score did a better job with their NFC picks for the '93 set, than they did for the AFC.
ReplyDeleteFun posts, thanks for the research!
ReplyDelete