Hobby Musings: When will Antonio Brown have Patriots cards? – In the midst of a busy football weekend, the sports world was rocked by Antonio Brown news. Brown’s stunning release from the Raiders was quickly topped by his signing with the Patriots. Aside from the ramifications on the field, it also has consequences for his card market. For more on what Brown’s switch means for the hobby, I had the chance to catch up with Panini’s Rob Springs. The following interview was conducted via email.
KS: How does Antonio Brown abruptly leaving the Raiders and joining the Patriots affect his card market?
RS: 100% for the better. His collectability with the Raiders was going to be limited, unless he went out and had a HUGE season. Now he get a popular fan base who will purchase his new Patriots cards, assuming he stays with the team.
KS: From a business standpoint for Panini, how does this change the card production strategy when it comes to Brown?
RS: Nothing really. We will treat him like any other player and try to get him into new sets as soon as possible. We already had an autograph deal in place with him, as well.
KS: Have you ever had something like this happen with another player who had as high a profile as Brown?
RS: Nothing comes to mind immediately – factoring in someone with this big of a name changing teams opening weekend.
KS: I know he had a card in the National Sports Collectors Convention promo packs showing him in a Raiders uniform. Did he have any other cards showing him in the silver and black?
RS: Yes, we did clone work on him, so he was in all of our early season releases pictured as a Raider.
KS: As brief and tumultuous as his time with Oakland was, do you think there will be a collector’s market for his Raiders stuff?
RS: I don’t think so, although I could certainly see the novelty in getting some of the SP parallels or autos just because of the entire situation.
KS: When do you think is the soonest we’ll see him his cards feature him in a Patriots jersey?
RS: We should be able to have him in the releases around the first of November. So, I would look for those updated cards beginning in programs like Obsidian and Passing the Torch.
For more Hobby Musings from Kelsey Schroyer, follow him on Twitter @KelSchroy75.
Hobby Musings: When will Antonio Brown have Patriots cards?
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