1994 Coca-Cola Monsters of the Gridiron

The 1994 Coca-Cola Monsters of the Gridiron cards came in card packs inside twelve packs of soda in 1994.  The cards had NFL stars dressed in costumes for Halloween which is the timeframe I believe these were released.  I've always liked the set though I get it is a niche set. I knew someone who worked at a convenience store back in the day who would give me the packs when they'd empty packs of cans that went in their cooler and was able to assemble a full set.  Not the easiest thing back to do back then.  

 

There is one star from each team and the costumes vary from very elaborate to "I'l put grass on my head" - see the Bengals' Dan Wilkerson.

Considering the way some of these guys are dressed I'm surprised they were able to get big stars such as Emmitt Smith, Marshall Faulk, Junior Seau, etc. 

The Carolina Panthers and Jacksonville Jaguars were new to the league and didn't have actual players so those teams ended up with art cards.  Again I really like this set for it's uniqueness and fun which we don't see enough of in cards anymore.  I also think about these every October and never get around to posting.  I remembered this year - enjoy. 

CHECKLIST:

 1   Eric The Red (Eric Swann - Ari)
  2   Tarantula (Jesse Tuggle - Atl)
  3   Big Bear (Cornelious Bennett - Buf)
  4   Panthers (Carolina Panthers)
  5   Zorro (Chris Zorich - Chi)
  6   Big Daddy (Dan Wilkinson - Cin)
  7   Bad Bone (Eric Turner)
  8   Lone Star Sheriff (Emmitt Smith)
  9   The Bandit (Steve Atwater - Den)
10   Chillin (Pat Swilling - Det)
11   Ghost (Sean Jones - GB)
12   Scarecrow (Ray Childress - Hou)
13   The Missile (Marshall Faulk - Ind)
14   Jaguars (Jacksonville Jaguars)
15   Attack Cat (Derrick Thomas - KC)
16   Renegade Raider (Chester McGlockton - LA Raiders)
17   The Barbarian (Shane Conlan - LA Rams)
18   Cobra (Marco Coleman - Mia)
19   Runaway Train (John Randle - Min)
20   The Piledriver (Bruce Armstrong - NE)
21   Raging (Renaldo Turnbull - NO)
22   Jumbo (John Elliot - NYG)
23   The Rattler (Ronnie Lott - NYJ)
24   Rocket Man (Randall Cunningham - Phi)
25   Knight Raider (Neil O'Donnell - Pit)
26   Stealth (Junior Seau - SD)
27   Psycho (Tom Rathman - SF)
28   Tez Rex (Cortez Kennedy - Sea)
29   Hyena (Hardy Nickerson - TB)
30   Jackhammer (Hen Harvey - Was)
--   Checklist Card

2016 Panini Prestige Football Cards

I didn't realize I had already reviewed this way back in June.  So here is a second look at this set.  I liked it then and still do which is good.  The front is borderless with the player's name and team logo at the bottom and the Prestige logo at the top.  This left plenty of room for the photos which is always a good thing.  I do think they have plenty of room to add the player's position at the bottom which would have been nice.  The backs have some color with a good sized team logo over a duplicate of the front side player photo in black and white.  Player info, a short write-up and 2015/career stat lines are also included on the backs.  Not bad at all.  Pretty good pull with the highlight being Peyton Manning.  Could do without the parallel Green Xtra Points cards.  They really don't do anything for me.  I received the base and the Xtra Point Devonta Freeman cards and show them below.  The Alma Maters card of Troy Aikman is a nice looking card.  Also grabbed a Hardwear, Blue Chip Recruits, and Passport insert.  Would have liked a few more retired player cards but I still liked what pulled.  Again I like the set and wouldn't be averse to picking up more especially at the price point.

    BREAKDOWN:
40 - Total Cards
35 - Base Cards (4 - RC, 4 - Xtra Point Green)
1 - Alma Maters
1 - Hardwear
1 - Blue Chip Recruits
1 - Passport

2016 Panini Football Cards

Grabbed a pack of these last month but just now getting to them.  They are the 2016 Panini football cards.  These aren't bad looking cards but I wished the borders didn't take up so much space.  Seems   like the photos are too small.  Still I like the overall design on both the fronts and backs.  These aren't high end cards so picking up packs here and there should be easy.  The insert and rookie cards are ok as well. I pulled two rookie cards and one accolades card that highlights retired greats and their achievements.  Love those cards.  Again, they are nice looking cards even if they don't knock it out of the park.

Kevin Garnett to Retire

Kevin Garnett will retire after 22 seasons in the NBA.  Garnett was nothing short of a stud - a guy who in his prime would give you 20+ points per game and double digit rebounds every game while playing outstanding defense.  Much of his career was in Minnesota whom he helped elevate to a contender though the Timberwolves’ success was short lived.  Garnett was also a passionate player who was just fun to watch.    

Garnett won his only championship after being traded to Boston after the 2006-07 season.  His minutes and stats both dropped but much of that was due to the makeup of the team.  It was great he was able to get a championship under his belt.  He deserved one as much as anyone else and his emotions after the game will long be remembered.  I think Garnett was great for the league and I’ll miss that energy he brought to the game.      

 

 

 

2003-04 League MVP

9 X All-NBA

2007-08 Defensive Player of the Year

12 X All-Defensive Team

15 X All-Star (2002-03 MVP)

95-96 All-Rookie Team

 

2016 Topps Bunt Baseball Cards

Topps decided to move their digital app cards to cardboard giving us their 2016 Bunt trading cards.  Pricewise these are low end cards but still look pretty nice.  The fronts have the great photos Topps always delivers with a large team logo behind the player.  I really like how this was done.  It isn't over the top and doesn't take away too much from the background.  The Bunt logo is at the top of the card while the player name, position and team are at the bottom against a silver metallic background.  I'm liking it.  A simple yet nice looking different card.  The backs aren't that impressive with any stats they might provide in the write-up.  But I have seen worse.  Overall I do like the cards and will grab some more.  

  

2016 Topps Star Wars The Force Awakens Chrome

Was in a Target some time ago and saw the packs for the 2016 Topps Star Wars The Force Awakens Chrome Trading Cards and of course had to pick them up.  I'm not a fan of chrome cards but these I like more than any other chrome cards I've come across.  I think it helps that they don't have the all chrome/silver/shiny backgrounds that a majority of the sports cards have. 

These are just "shiny" versions of the standard The Force Awakens set.  I think they're done well enough that I like them.  I won't pick any more up but I do think they are nice looking cards.  If you like either the Star Wars cards or chrome as a whole I don't think you'll be disappointed in picking some of these up.  There were six cards in the pack and I didn't grab any of the subsets or inserts.  Not a big deal.  I still enjoyed my pull. 

 

2016 Donruss Football

Grabbed a retail blaster box of the 2016 Donruss Football.  I really liked the cards last year so I went whole hog right off the bat with this set.  There were a total of 88 cards in 11 packs.  I like the design and enjoyed my pull. 

The fronts have the Donruss logo, player's name, position, and team at the top on a team colored background.  The border around the photo is in the same color but is broken up in stripes on the sides in appropriate team colors.  The picture takes up the rest of the front with the exception of the team logo in the bottom right of the photo.  Small touch but I like it.

I really like the backs which are done in team colors.  A football surrounds the card number and the team logo is done in black and white.  There is a player write-up as well as the 2015 and career stats for the player as well as additional player information (birthday, height, weight, college).  I love the retro feel of the back of these cards.  The first time in a long while I've liked the back of a card this much. 

As for the pull I'm very happy.  I only grabbed three Falcons and two Bills players but there were plenty of stars in this box so I can't complain.  I love the retired players with the Steve Grogan and Archie Manning cards being the highlight for me.  The Gridiron Kings cards are one of my favorites.  I pulled DeMarco Murray which didn't thrill me any but it is still a nice card. I also grabbed a Megan Fox "Fans of the Game" card but was really hoping for a Daisy Ridley card but it wasn't to be. I like the "Production Line" card of Cam Newton as it harkens back to the old League Leaders cards.  The one relic card was a Jonathan Williams Rookie Phenom Jersey Relic card.  Not the greatest pull but he is a Bill so I'm good.  The other subsets and inserts were ok but didn't stand out.  There were still plenty of the inserts I didn't get but would love to.  They did a great job on this set - I would have enjoyed grabbing some of the others.  Check out the expansive checklist.  Bottom line is I like this set quite a bit and will definitely grab more. 

 

BREAKDOWN:

88 - Total Cards

84 - Base Cards (1 - Press Proof, 7 - Rated Rookie <1 Press Proof>, 5 - RC, 5 - Retired players)

1 - Rookie Phenom Jersey Relic

1 - Gridiron King

1 - Production Line

1 - Fans of the Game