Random Wax: 2023 Contenders Football Blaster

2023 Contenders:   Justin Jefferson and the Vikings are still trying to figure out quarterback.  They did sign Kyler Murray.  I'm not a Murray guy but the Vikings are better than the Cardinals and I'm interested to see if Murray can do well with Minnesota.

Lamar still hasn't shown us he can rise up to the challenge in the playoffs, future Hall of Famer Aaron Donald is retired, and Saquon has won a championship with the Eagles.

Nothing left to say about Barry Sanders, but he was so great and fun to watch.  Even sometimes when he was roasting your team, you'd just be in awe.

Cousins and Wilson's careers have not gone as expected while Amon-Ra St. Brown is still one of the great receivers in the NFL.

Anthony Richardson couldn't stay healthy and couldn't show he was a worthy starting QB.  Jayden Reed has been good but dealt with injuries last year.  Draft Class, Rookie Ticket Relics and Round Numbers are all good ways to showcase young players.

I really like the look of Rookie Stallions inserts.

Lawrence and the Jags were 13-4 in 2025.  He still needs to get his completion percentage up and cut down on interceptions but maybe 2026 is the year he turns the corner.

Some defensive studs and quarterback goodness from the league.  Patrick Mahomes is the all-time leader in passing yards per game at 285.2.  I hope he can come back from injury with minimal impact.  KC did add a good running back, and Super Bowl MVP, in Kenneth Walker III.

BREAKDOWN:

40 – Total Cards

3 – Historic Draft Class Contenders

2 – Game Ticket Bronze Parallel

1 - Retired Great

1 – Rookie Stallions

1 – Round Numbers

1 – Draft Class Contenders

1 – Rookie Ticket Swatches

Random Wax: 2023-2024 Contenders Basketball (2 Packs)

 23-24 Contenders:  Wemby is still a basketball freak of nature.  It is already his 3rd season in the NBA and he's averaging 24 and 10 this year while shooting 38% from deep.  The Spurs are also a top 3 team in the Western Conference and has had some big wins over OKC.

Great pull in these packs.  It is a small set which helps.  This design is a good one for me.  I like Contenders and getting the backgrounds in the photo is a good touch.

Ausar Thompson and Jaime Jaquez Jr. are solid players in the league.  I like the look of Rookie Stallions.

Two Game Night Ticket cards and a Bronze Game Day Ticket Parallel.  Some nice variety for a set that doesn't have a ton.

These Historic Draft Class cards are great.  Two photos and retired greats.  Good combo.

Lauri Markkanen has become one of the best big men in the league.  He averages 27, 7 and 2 while shooting 36% from 3.  He's a true big man at 7-1.

As a reminder the Section is the player's weight, the Row is their height, and Seat is their jersey number.

Another Historic Draft Class retired legend.

Lots of big men love.  And Kawhi, my favorite player in the league, and he's maybe having his best season yet.  He's had to deal with a few injuries, which he can't seem to shake but he and the Clippers have surged of late and are back in the playoff/play-in picture.

BREAKDOWN:
44 – Total Cards
6 – RC
2 – Retired Greats
2 – Game Night Ticket
2 – Historic Draft Class
1 – Stallions
1 – Draft Class
1 – Green Game Day Ticket Parallel
1 – Bronze Game Day Ticket Parallel

2014 Contenders Football with Autograph

 2014 Contenders: I'm a big Peyton Manning fan.  He was one of the all-time great quarterbacks and has a great personality that makes him a good ambassador for the sport.  7X All-Pro, 5X MVP, 2X Super Bowl Champion, Super Bowl MVP, and the All-2000s team.  I miss him on the field.

No idea why I've never posted this pack I bought over three years ago.  I really like this design.  Just something about how the colors work, the design and the big logo in the background.  I can see me picking up more of these.

As a reminder, the Section, Row and Seat numbers are the player's height (feetinches), weight and uniform number.  Sam Bradford is getting a lot of MVP chatter for his amazing season he's having.  This was probably part of a Blowoutcards.com purchase.

That Touchdown Tandem is a good-looking card.  Always happy to pull an autograph but if you haven't heard of David Fales, join the club.  He played three seasons and got into 5 games in his career.  That is a Rookie Ink Gold #/10.  Great pull.  Just wish it was someone else from that draft like an Aaron Donald.

I know that Robert Griffin III's career didn't quite make the mark he hoped for, but I do like that photo and card.  The gold pants on their unis always look good with that jersey.  I'm also a fan of the dark blue Chargers unis.  Nope, not a powder blue Chargers uni guy.

The backs are okay.  The photos are duplicates of what we see on the front.  No stats but overall, I've seen worse.  5X All-Pro and All-2000s team member Luke Kuechly is one of my favorite players, so I was really happy to see him show up in this pack.  

BREAKDOWN:
22 – Total Cards
1 – Touchdown Tandem
1 – Rookie Ink Gold #/10

Random Wax: 2021-2022 Contenders

21-22 Contenders:   DeMar Derozan doesn't wow folks, but he does so many things well.  He has a great mid-range shot, shoots a good percentage, and is really good at getting his own shot.  He doesn't shoot the 3 at high rate or percentage but he's a guy you want on your team.  Now 36, he's averaged 21 points per game over his career and is a 3X All-Pro and 6X All-Star.  He's with the Kings now and also one of my favorites in the game.

We have two International Tickets and a 2021 Draft Class insert.  Johnson was a great find by the Hawks with the 20th pick of that draft.  He's averaging 20 points and 8 rebounds this season.  

I like Contenders but this design wasn't their best leaving very little space for the photo.

The backs are fine with plenty of color.

Great pull in this pack.  Luka and the Lakers are off to a hot start even though he's missed time with injury.  Fun pack and it's been a fun season so far.

BREAKDOWN:
22 – Total Cards
1 – 2021 Draft Class
1 – International Ticket
1 – Bronze Game Ticket

Random Wax: 2024 Contenders Football

2025 Contenders: Ja'Marr Chase and the Bengals are struggling but he's still a dominant receiver.  I'm not sure bringing in Joe Flacco moves the needle for Cincy but at least he has weapons to throw to.

Adams is an LA Ram now while Sutton is catching balls from Bo Nix in Denver.  Green Bay and Jordan Love were NFL darlings before losing to Cleveland and tying Dallas in weeks 3 and 4.

Three inserts all highlighting youngsters.  Xavier Worthy is top of the class here on the Draft Class card.  We also get Rookie Stallions which look pretty good as well as the Round Numbers insert.

These Historic Draft Class inserts are so much fun.  Vinny Testaverde was the #1 pick of the '87 draft but Rich Gannon, taken in the 4th round by New England, arguably had the better career taking Oakland to the Super Bowl while earning All-Pro honors 2X and making 4 Pro Bowls.  Love the creamsicle unis.

I really like the look of this set.  A lot going on on the fronts, but I do think they are all good.

These are always fun.  Aiden Hutchinson, Michigan alum, is having another really good year with the Lions.  Philly has been an enigma this season and need to find consistency and their running game which was so good last year. 

BREAKDOWN:
22 – Total Cards
3 – Game Ticket Red Parallel
1 – Draft Class
1 – Red Parallel
1 – Retired Greats
1 – Rookie Stallions
1 – Round Numbers
1 – Historic Draft Class
1 – Game Ticket Bronze Parallel

 

Random Wax: 2019 Contenders Football

 2019 Contenders:  Patrick Mahomes needs no introduction.  The best quarterback in the NFL today, his accolades will go down in history when he's compared to the best ever to play the position.  He's a Texas Tech alum and I've always been a fan.

I'm a big fan of Luke Kuechly.  He was just such a good smart linebacker in the league.  Mike Evans is still a top receiver in the league and 2025 will be his 12th season in the NFL.  I really like this set and this base design in particular.

Rookie of the Year Contenders have a nice look to them as do the Legendary Contenders that give us retired greats.  The Legendary Contenders is an insert I really like.

The backs are really nice sans having no stats of course.  And wow it seems so long since Goff was a Ram.

Fun pack of cards that I purchased in 2023.  I rarely complain about Contenders.  We'll end it with a Winning Ticket A-A-Ron.

BREAKDOWN:
22 – Total Cards
2 – Rookie of the Year Contenders
1 – Retired Great
1 – Winning Ticket
1 – Legendary Contenders

Random Wax: 2023-2024 Contenders Basketball (2 Packs) with Auto

23-24 Contenders:  Giannis and the Bucks haven't seen the results on the court in recent years but that doesn't take away from this man's greatness.  He's averaged 26+ points per game for eigtht of his 12 NBA seasons including 30+ the last three seasons.  In a league that values the three he still dominates other teams in different ways they can't defend and we don't see with any other players.  Don't forget about him when we talk about greats in today's game.

Contenders is a small set, so you'll always see plenty of stars in your pulls unless you just get really unlucky.  These three are greats in the game. What a difference a year makes.  Doncic traded to the Lakers, Durant to the Rockets and Tatum out for the upcoming season with an injury.

All three of these youngsters are really good players in the league.  I like Draft Class inserts and the look of Rookie Stallions.

Historic Draft Class cards give us a look back at past greats which is a highlight for me.  And Shaq is always a fun pull.

Unfortunately, Leaky Black didn't get a second season in the NBA.  That Chet Holmgren, of the champion Thunder, is on a Green Parallel and we get a Game Night Ticket Kyrie Irving.  That is actually a solid design.

Celtics legend.

Porzingis is now an Atlanta Hawk who've gone all in for the upcoming season with the East up for grabs.  Siakam is now a Pacer and things have changed so much in Indy since they made the Finals.  Haliburton out with an injury and Myles Turner took his game to Milwaukee.

Butler is in Golden State now while Anthony Davis ended up in Dallas in the crazy Luka trade.  I'm not the biggest AD homer but I hope he and the Mavs actually do well together.  Anthony Edwards, Georgia Bulldog alum, is the new hotness in the league.

BREAKDOWN:

44 – Total Cards

7 – RC

2 – Retired Greats

2 – Rookie Stallions

2 – Historic Draft Class

2 – Green Game Ticket Parallels

1 – Draft Class

1 – Game Night Ticket

1 – Rookie Ticket Autograph