The Last Post…and a farewell to a Villain

This year has finally come to an end.  An unforgiving parallel universe of a year where wrong was right and low was even further lower than we could all imagine.  Maybe it was the end of a bad dream, the kind of nightmare where you’re about to crash into a concrete wall, screeching brakes being hammered to the floor, arms off the wheel to cover your eyes, barreling towards the wall and nanoseconds before impact you wake up.  Sweating.  Shaking.  Breathing heavily.  Saying to yourself, “what the hell just happened!”  The nightmare has ended…for now, but is it really over?  What will ’21 bring for us?  I would love to see an overcorrection from the wrong to the right and some goodness be brought to everyone.  More generosity and kindness.  Less judgement and crassness towards others.  Can we live our lives in a manner that we want to without condescension?  I sure hope so. 

I love this hobby, I love it dearly.  It brings me great joy.  In a world where I have marginal control over things, I can control my collection. 

It’s there when I need it to regroup emotionally…I’m a highly anxious person. 

It’s there when I’ve had a rough day and need to zone out…I worry too much about others opinions.

It’s there when I need a new organizing project and get an idea in the middle of the night…I got some OCD too.

Our hobby is fantastic.  A lot has changed about it this past year. 

I hope it keeps evolving. 

I hope the people that are new are welcomed with open arms.

I hope the new people take some history lessons and learn about our hobby.

I hope we let people collect what and how they want to collect.

For 2021, I will be more involved in helping to make this hobby great.  Reaching out to bloggers, twitter folks, flippers, old-school collectors and the new ones as well.  I plan to buy more from my LCS than eBay, but I also plan to sell more on eBay.  I want to find a happy middle where I can enjoy the hobby without feeling like I am going to strangle myself financially.  Creating a net zero cost of cards is the ultimate goal, not sure how that will get done.  The architecture and build portion of the world is attempting to reduce carbon emissions significantly with the 2030 challenge, but this is nothing like that. 

I just want to have fun with these pieces of cardboard and card stock and shiny whatever the hell they are materials.  I hope you do too!

***

With the end of the year usually comes collecting or personal goals.  I’m not going to list anything, I think that’s mostly been covered by the manifesto above.  So, instead, I’d like to take the time to update the annual wallet card and take a look back. 

I started carrying a card in my wallet quite a few years ago.  It was a way to always keep the hobby with me wherever I went.  Every once in a while the card would be exposed to other people and it would start a conversation, or maybe just some ridicule from some colleagues…architects can be a judgmental group, ya know?

At some point along the way, I’ve lost a few cards…but here’s what I’ve got since I started the blog.

2020: Derek Jeter, New York Yankees 1999 Pacific Paramount, card #162

***

2019: Dale Murphy, Atlanta Braves 1987 Topps, card #490

***

2018: Joe Gibbs, Washington Redskins 1992 Pro Set, card #90

***

2017: Derek Jeter, New York Yankees 2014 Gypsy Queen, card #N174-DJ

***

2016: Art Monk, Washington Redskins 1985 Topps, card # 185

***

2015: Rickey Henderson, New York Yankees 1986 Topps, card #500

***

2014: Joe Gibbs, Washington Redskins 1990 Pro Set, card #333

***

2013: Jackie Robinson, Brooklyn Dodgers 1991 Topps Archives, card #1

***

AND NOW, FOR TWO-THOUSAND TWENTY ONE!  THE NEW WALLET CARD IS (drumroll…)

2021: Santana Moss, Washington Redskins 2006 Topps, card #245

***

I know, I know…I can hear the clapping through the keyboard!

***

OK, so when I woke up this morning I was thinking about the best video I could share with you all today.  Something fun and positive and light-hearted to ring the new year in.  I was getting distracted during the day and everything was getting away from me.  When I sat down to start writing I first jumped on twitter to get an update on this mad world we’re living in…and my heart sank when I saw that MF Doom has passed away…shit shit shit shit.  He was one of my favorite MC’s…crazy entertaining and a tremendous wordsmith.  Lots of double entendre’s and just some good ol’ hip hop metaphors.  At this point, I’m not sure what took his life as he was only 49 (4 years older than me).  The one thing that can make me smile is that he actually passed away on Halloween of this year.  That’s gotta be the most MF Doom thing ever.  For the uninitiated, he was wore a ‘gladiator’ mask and was well known for skipping out on shows but still having someone perform for him…the mask helped with that endeavor.  Not sure of the reason for keeping his passing quiet for two months, but that’s none of my business really.  If you have the time, please take a listen to the video below of his collaboration with the producer Madlib for the quintessential MC and producer hip hop album.  It’s a classic. 

MADVILLAIN – MADVILLAINY

Also, check out his earlier work with KMD as Zev Love X and music from his other aliases; King Geedorah, King Ghidra, Viktor Vaughn, Metal Fingers, King Dumile and Metal Face.  He also did some work with 3rd Bass back in the day…enjoy.  Have a Happy New Year, hug your loved one, tell them you love them and stay safe out there.

-Cardboard Hogs!   

Organizing at 2005

After numerous years of threatening to get organized, this year it is truly happening.  It’s a slow go, but I’m getting there.  How do I get there you ask…well, let me give you an example!

The 2005 Washington Redskins…and google docs.  That’s right two things that have nothing to do with each other have come together for today’s post.  A post about a team that was anxiety inducing to watch and a blast to look back through the cards from that year. 

Now, when I mention google docs…there are layers to this.  I like, well…I require and love organization.  I can’t stand it when things are not in the place I expect them to be.  I also love and require a ‘complete’ version of something.  If is buy #3 and #7 of something, it’s only a matter of time before I’m searching for numbers 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6.  I could go on too depending on when it all ends, but I think you get the idea.  I’m a completionist…not sure that’s a word, but neither was ‘blog’ 15 years ago.  I like to have a COMPLETE list of things.  That’s an incredible challenge when dealing with sports cards, especially modern sports cards… 

Parallels

Rainbows

Inserts

Variations

Serial Numbers

SP’s

SSP’s

1 of 1’s

The list goes on and on and on and I want my list to contain each and every single one of these cards.  Now, I know I won’t get everyone.  That’s insanity and I don’t have that kind of cash.  That’s not the point.  The point is the chase.  The pursuit of the low hanging Topps flagship vs. the extra hard to find Upper Deck something or another for a specific year with a specific color variation and the SN on the back…or front.  (Do we have opinions on where those should be?  Front or Back?  I’m a back of the card guy FWIW).  So, in order to get a complete list, or at least that I can feel is 97% complete I take the inventory of cards from the Beckett database and Trading Card Database and combine them into one google sheet…here’s the Washington Redskins version (name change will happen at some point soon…).  Insane I know.  The list covers every card, some objects and a few magazines from what I could find from 1935 – Today.  That’s upwards of 70,000 cards….seems like there would be more, but 70k is what I like to call – A SHIT TON – of cards.  The frightening part is that I’m sure I’m missing a few.  I’ve already found a few cards I have that are not in the google doc.  It’s only maddening if I know about the missing misses…a bit of Schrödinger’s plates going on…ok, maybe not.  So, yeah…the list…it’s insane.  I’ve tracked everything up to 2005 and have combined the lists up to 2012.  Some more work ahead of me, but that’s part of the hobby I enjoy.

Here’s the list…if you dare!

So, the cards from 2005.  The team from 2004.  The pain.

Here’s a sampling of what I’ve checked off the list, an image of a few of my favorite cards or players from the ’04 season and ’05 designs.

First off, the Quarterbacks.  When you have two QB’s that’s ok, because a great backup is hard to come by…but when you have three…that’s too many.  It’s like an exponential thing.  Two is ok, Three is what the hell are you even doing!

Next player is LaVar Arrington.  For a few years he was hands down my favorite player.  Never really reached superstardom at Linebacker, but he was a solid player.  Then a few injuries piled up and he was quickly overlooked and shuttled off for other players that didn’t really match his caliber.  Seeing him in New York as a Giant was a heartbreaker for me…

Chris Cooley was great.  He had a tremendous sense of humor and once even showed off his prick while (I’ll let you google that and have it in your search history) snapping a pick of the playbook…not sure what was more egregious…NFL playbooks are sacred.

Santana MOSS!  Absolutely loved this guy in Washington…so much so, that I’ve been collecting his Jets cards as well.  He was so incredible and passionate, how could you not want a guy like that on your team.  He was traded for Laveranues Coles…who, ironically was traded to Washington from the Jets originally.  The second trade worked out better for my team.

The next guy, Carlos Rogers was…well…I really thought he would be special.  A high draft pick in ’05 that just didn’t pan out as a big time player in DC.  He moved on to the 49ers and had a bit of a rebirth, then on to the Raiders where he ended his career.

Ok.  Here are a couple Miami guys…I could have grouped Moss in here as well, but these two were special.  I love Portis.  One of my top 5 Washington guys of all time…Love everything he brought to the team, including Sean Taylor.  Not saying that Portis was the reason Taylor came to the team, but he did push hard.  To be honest, I don’t think it would have been wise for Joe Gibbs to pass on such a talented player…still miss ST21.

***

***

The last group of guys are Redskins greats, guys that had a huge impact on the organization.  All three are in the Redskins ring of Fame.  Bobby Mitchell and Charley Taylor are both in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

oh yeah, found this one too…Alex Smith Rookie Card…along with one of the numerous Browns QB draft picks Charlie Frye…and future Browns QB Jason Campbell. Let’s play six degrees of separation with these guys some day.

***

Since 2020 is almost done. YAY. I thought i’d share the most 2020 video from one of my favorite groups in the world. RTJ – Run The Jewels. Love these guys!

1/1 Moss Plate

In my current obsession of collecting plates, not fine china, but Redskin plates.  I picked up a 2012 Topps Printing plate of Santana Moss.  Funny enough, it is another magenta plate…again, i swear these things are far more frequent than any other color.  WHY!!??!!?

Here is the front…

12 TO Santana Moss Magenta Printing Plate F

…and here is the back

13 TO Santana Moss Magenta Printing Plate Byou gotta love metal cards.

 

1 of 1 Moss

It’s been way too long, I know.

Blogging has become hard for me, almost a chore that needs to get done, but i don’t wanna do it!

It’s not that it’s difficult, it’s just hard to find the time or energy to scan, write and post something on a regular basis.  Something that I would be happy to put out there and hopefully entertain the readers.  It was too much, so I took a little break.  Hopefully the break ends here and I can keep up with my postings and get back some readership that I may have lost.  I know there are so many great blogs in the collecting community and i’m just trying to be a part of the gang and continue to be an active participant in our hobby.

Along with my lack of blogging, i’ve cut down quite a bit on my purchasing of cards as i’m REALLY trying to get organized.  I’ve said that many times, but this time it’s for real!  I hope.  I have a couple of boxes filled with R******s that need to be collated and organized.  We all know how fun that can be, right!

Part of the problem with my organizing conundrum is that i’ve been focusing on commons, which means I come home from a show with 75 ten cent cards…and put them in a white box next to the computer…only to sit there for months on end…BUT, i’ve also managed to pick up some nice autographs and jersey cards of my favorite players on the Washington Football team.

08 TF Santana Moss Cyan 1of1 Printing Plate

Here’s one.  A one of one, Mr. Santana Moss.  I believe this is a genuine 1 of 1 cyan printing plate.  Although it seems  a little fishy to me?  There is nothing on the back of the card that says it’s a 1 of 1 and the printing plate is encased in cardboard.  I own a couple of other plates and never seen them packaged this way.  If i got duped, then i am out $8.  If it didn’t than i’m pretty happy with my first printing plate from the DC football team. -HTTR!

08 TF Santana Moss Cyan PP 1of1 back

 

anyone else overreacting to this Kendrick Lamar verse on the Big Sean track?

Cedar Hills Show – The low budget version ep.IV

I’m finding that scanning cards is an arduous task.  I imagine this is why so many bloggers choose to not scan that many cards or just eventually allow their blogs to fade to black.  So I’m going to ride out the next couple of posts with some more cards that are sitting in my queue.  As you would imagine they are all Redskin cards, so I understand if you stop reading from this point on…but you really shouldn’t bail…this is going to be a great visit.  I’m feeling wordy tonight and have a ton of stuff to show.

Buckle your seat belts.

Digging through dusty old boxes gives you time to think about things.  Things you could have done.  Things you should be doing and most importantly, things you completely struck out on.  That’s what this trifecta of young, future stars represents for me.  Justin Tryon and Malcolm Kelly were products of a Cerrato draft.  Those last two words are almost always followed by the following two words ‘…which sucked’.  Look at those crazy eyes!

cerrato_vinny

Vinny did all he could to single handedly destroy the franchise for many many years.  Constantly selecting guys that should have never been drafted or shouldn’t have been drafted so high.  That’s all assuming, of course that the Redskins had picks to make.  Cerrato hyped Kelly up so much that he mad me believing we had the next Art Monk on the roster.  Unfortunately for Kelly, he had Greg Oden knees and never really played that much…but made some nice money.  Tryon was supposed to be a nice kick/punt returner and future cornerback.  Neither really happened and he was eventually jettisoned to Indy.  Thompson was a free agent pick up for the Redskins in 1999, never really making an impact with the team.  BUT he was the homecoming King for Cedar Hill High School, so that’s a thing.  He did two things I will never accomplish. Play in the NFL and be called a King by anyone, ever…

00 Tryon Kelly Thompson

Speaking of big disappointments, Michael Westbrook.  This guy and Health Shuler should have been the next great QB/WR duo, but both never really panned out.  When these cards initially came out, they were probably going for $8-$10 each…now, you can pick the trifecta up for fifteen cents.  Don’t let your kids ‘invest’ in cards.

95 PR Michael Westbrook

This is a great trio right here.  B-Mitch, Stephen Davis and Champ.  Mitchell should be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame already!  Dude is only behind Jerry Rice in all purpose yards for a career.  JERRY RICE!  That’s it.  Anytime you are on a list and the only guy ahead of you is Jerry Rice, you are a winner.  Davis is really special…He’s from Spartanburg, SC.  I have lots of family there.  I should write something about him soon, very soon.  Champ.  This is the guy that brought Portis to DC.  There was a time that I really disliked (read hated) Champ.  Anytime a player begs to not play for my favorite team, they might as well be dead to me.  But, being the forgiving man that I am, I have seen the light and appreciate his phenomenal career.  I just wish he could have had his success with the Redskins.

00 TO Mitchell Davis Bailey

The three greatest Redskin quarterbacks.  Sammy, Sonny and Joe.  Three photos.  Three face mask bars.  These guys are old school like suede pumas.  Sammy Baugh was a Texan and was one of the main catalyst for the forward pass in the NFL.  If money was no object, he is a guy that I would love to get some vintage stuff of…instead i’m relegated to reprints and new releases.  The Sonny card is pretty fantastic.  Love the colors and the determination in his eyes is priceless.  Plus I love the spear helmet.  The Theismann sticker is actually a duplicate, but i figured for a nickel, you couldn’t go wrong.

00 TU Sammy Sonny Joe

Mark Rypien was one of the three quarterbacks to win a Super Bowl under Joe Gibbs.  He’s sort of a local guy…went to Washington State and still lives in Spokane I believe.  He’s also made a few appearances in Vancouver just across the big river.

92 FL Mark Rypien Performance Highlights

Who loves parallels.  I always have to double check these things…’I know i’ve seen this card before…do I have this one or that one?’  #cardcollectorproblems

08 TO Cooley Portis Moss

08 TK Moss Portis Campbell

I’m losing gas here, so i’m just going to show you the goods.  Coles was annoying, so glad he’s didn’t last long.  LaVar was the first jersey I ever bought and Gardner goes along side Westbrook for good, but not as good as he could have been.

04 UD Coles Arrington Gardner

 

09 UD Campbell Fletcher Randle El

06 TO Cooley Betts Portis

00 Mayhew Davis Green

00 Gilbert Davis Portis

 

I love the Redskins.  This is MY team.  I love going through all of the old cardboard and seeing guys that had great careers.  Some players have the ability to meet or exceed their talent while others fail to live up to whatever standards have been set for them.  As a fan, it’s difficult to understand that these guys deal with a lot each day and sacrifice their physical health and well being to entertain us.  So that said, I would personally like to apologize to Champ Bailey, Lav….Coles (sorry dude, your name is weird), Michael Westbrook, Sean Gilbert and Rod Gardner.  I have said many bad things about you guys in the past and it wasn’t fair to you.  You have accomplished things that I wish I could have done…and made a lot of fans happy (or pissed! Vinny!)  That’s what I was really thinking about when sorting through these pieces of cardboard, not getting upset with these men in Burgundy and Gold.  They are doing their best.

This was probably one of the most rambling posts about nothing I have ever done.  It will get better…

 

Road Trip Packs IV – Lost and Found

I had a little time this beautiful Saturday morning and was looking through my scanned/undocumented folder and noticed a couple more cards that I picked up while I was in San Antonio.

The three cards were pulled from a dime box, so you are looking at 30 cents of hard earned money.

The first pairing of cards is DeAngelo Hall and Santana Moss.

11 PC DeAngelo Hall Santana Moss

Hall has always been a polarizing player.  You love him or hate him.  I have yet to hear anyone say ‘eh, he’s alright…’  It’s always love or hate with the guy.  Personally, I love him.  I think he’s passionate and truly cares about what he does…doesn’t hurt that he made a boatload of money from the Raiders and Redskins.  He was cut earlier this year and it looked like he wouldn’t be back, but no one around the league really gave him much notice so he ended up back with the Redskins…which makes me happy, especially with all the young players in the secondary this year.

Moss is my man and I love the photo of him in this card.  Nice of Panini to get the whole body in the shot too.

The last card is Triple Threads Clinton Portis numbered to 1350.  This brings up one of the big issues with the hobby.  I’m sure this card was immediately discarded when pulled from a box costing over $150 and redirected to a dime box.  Someone was probably trying to pull the big hit and got stuck with this Clinton Portis card…no auto, no jersey, no patch.  The only redeeming value is the serial number, but really it’s not that great either…1350!  This is why I don’t typically buy boxes anymore, especially of the high end stuff.  Had I purchased a box of 2010 Triple Threads and pulled this card, I would have been super excited and more than happy to put it in my Portis collection…but financially, it would not have been worth the price of the box.  In this case, I win.  Someone else spent the high price and I got a sweet card!

10 TT Clinton Portis 460:1350

Bonus Redskins and a gift package

As I mentioned in the previous post Colbey from Cardboard Collections hooked me up with a few extra Redskin cards, which was very cool.  As I was flipping through the team bag of cards, I noticed most of the cards I do not have for my team sets, so they will be great additions.  Thank, Colbey!

Here is a peek at the cards that stood out for me.

09 TA Brian OrakpoThe Orakpo is really nice.  One of my favorite players on the team and a Rookie card to boot.  This one of those cards that i’ve never seen before either…so a really nice piece of cardboard.

09 SP Clinton Portis Jason CampbellNext is a couple of blasts from the not so far past.  SP Threads of Portis and Campbell…wish I had done a better job of aligning the card banding.

13 UD Robert Griffin III Football HeroesColbey also sent the two Griffin’s from this years Upper Deck set that I noticed on his blog…and really wanted for my RG3 personal collection.  Love the Baylor jerseys.

12 GG Moss Orakpo HankersonNext is a three card filmstrip of sorts of Moss, Orakpo and Hankerson.  I absolutely love the Orakpo photo…although it was used on the Topps issue as well…or at least the same pose…not really sure right now and too lazy to look it up.  The Hankerson card is a little disconcerting as it is cropped really poorly and he is chopped off at the ankles…not to mention the gigantic offensive lineman ass poking out from the right.  Ass.

09 DT Chris CooleyI’m ending with Captain Chaos, Chris Cooooooley because I don’t believe he will be back next year…and I hope he ends up retiring.  Can’t wait to watch him in the booth calling games in the future…or maybe he will become some crazy weed smoking hippy living in the hills and making pottery.

As I said, there were a lot of great cards and these were just a small handful of my favorites from Colbey.  Thanks again!

I’m Back with a Break!

It’s funny how quickly you can get used to something and it become part of your routine.  I was on quite a nice little streak of doing a post a night, or at the very least one every other night for a few weeks…but it’s been 5 whole days since i’ve created a new post.

The reality is that i haven’t picked up many new things and i’ve been a little exhausted and wanted a break from work and collecting.  The drive from Texas took a lot out of me plus i’ve been riding my bike to work in hopes of losing a few pounds and getting in better shape.  Not to mention, the wife and I decided to take a couple days together and spend some time in Seattle with our son.  I have been jonesing to take him to his first baseball game and with the Yankees in town for a weekend series and a couple of day games, it was the perfect weekend…plus the weather has been fantastic!  So, now i’m back and will hopefully get a few posts up and running in the next few days.  I’ve missed the past two card shows, so i’m really excited about the one in a couple of weeks and am hoping to pick up some more of the new Redskins Draft Picks.  I always manage to walk away happy and pick up a handful of great new Redskin cards.

I received the Redskins (and Dolphins) cards from Colbey at Cardboard Collections for his 2013 Score Box Break prior to heading out for the weekend, but wanted to post what I received..  He was kind enough to send a whole bunch of other great cards that I will get to in my next post, but for this one, I wanted to show all of the Redskin cars and the rookie cards from the Dolphins.  This was my first online box break and it was cool to partake in the break.  It’s a great way to get the cards that I want without investing in a box for myself and being stuck with a bunch of cards that don’t excite me as much as the Redskin cards do…I hope to get involved in more for the future.

First up, the base cards of the two great Rookies that got the team moving in a whole new direction.  RG3 and The Butcher.

13 PS Robert Griffin IIIMy Redskins can’t catch a break in My Cardboard Mistress Football Contest, especially against those pesky Giants, but it’s really nice to see RG3 break away on a card against the New York Football Giants.

13 PS Alfred MorrisLove the landscape cards Score put out this year, really nice job…and i believe this is a photo of Alfred Morris’ first NFL Touchdown.

13 PS Santana Moss Pierre GarconI love both of the jumping receiver photos.  Santana was one of the few receivers that was able to catch a ball in that Steelers game where the recievers had 11 drops and did nothing to win a game that was very win-able.  The Garcon card is beautiful against the Cowboys in the Thanksgiving Day game.  I haven’t screamed at a TV in so long as I did this game…it started with screams of joy and excitement and moved to screams of panic and concern as the Cowboys inched back in to it.  Luckily the good guys won.

13 PS London Fletcher Ryan KerriganNo idea what games these cards are from, but I’m glad Fletcher will be running out of the fog filled helmet for at least one more year.  Also can’t wait to see how Kerrigan does this year with another successful season under his belt.  He could become an elite LB in the league if he can get some help from a healthy Orakpo.

13 PS Fred DavisSure hope Fred Davis can come back from the achilles tear and pick up where he left off…he can be a beast!

13 PS Robert Griffin III Franchise and AirmailHere is a couple of nice cards from ol’ Bobby Three Sticks.

13 PS Alfred Morris Future FranchiseI kind of think the future is now with this guy…although, running backs tend to have short careers.  Here’s hoping he has a great one that lasts a few years.

13 PS London Fletcher ScorecardA nice parallel of London Fletcher.

13 PS David AmersonDavid Amerson was taken in the second round and should become a nice player and hopefully can start before the year is out.  The weakest area for the Redskins in the past few seasons has definitely been their secondary.  The team did a good job of addressing that issue in the draft, now the players have to perform.

13 PS Miami DolphinsHere are the Dolphins rookies.  I’m kind of excited to see Dion Jordan play.  He was really solid at Oregon and can be a supremely talented Defensive End in the league.  One thing about these Score retro cards that i wished they would have done was make them a studio portrait like the originals…I think that was what made them classics.  A bunch of young guys with hopes of NFL stardom looking in to the camera lens…rather than some sideline photo.  They are still well done though.

Top 12 All Time Redskins: Santana Moss

In the next installment of my all-time favorite Washington Redskins players, Santana Moss checks in at #8.

12 TC Santana Moss NFL Captain Patch

TanaMan came to the Redskins in a trade that sent Laveranues Coles back to the Jets in 2004.  I was more than happy to see Coles go.  He had become another prima-donna receiver and complained about everything with the Redskins.  There could have been some behind the scene things I don’t know about, but if you don’t want to play for my favorite team, than I don’t want you to either.  Bringing Moss in was a bit of a coup for the Redskins.  They needed a big play receiver that could stretch the field as well as someone who could become a possession receiver.  Moss ended up filling both roles very nicely and was a part of the late season push for the playoffs in 2005.

12 PS Santana Moss Auto 4:25

Moss will forever be one of my favorite players for what he did on Monday night in Irving, Texas on September 19, 2005.

When the schedule for the 2005 season came out and i saw that the Cowboys and Redskins would be playing on September 19, the day before my 30th birthday, I knew i had to get tickets.  I got them locked down and went overboard on the seats, but was able to justify them by saying it was a gift…to me, because I’m special! 🙂  Finding someone to go with me was difficult and I was turned down by my father (I know…) and a couple other friends.  So, that left my Mom.  Who doesn’t love their mom?  They are the best.  She came through when noone else would and dealt with the 100+ degree temperature in the dumpy old Cowboy stadium to be a part of her son’s favorite team playing their biggest rival.  During the game, I could tell she wanted no part of the action on the field and was more than ready to leave…especially seeing how poorly my guys were playing.  Until the last 4 minutes of the game when the noodle armed Mark Brunell tossed two bombs downfield to a double teamed Santana Moss for game winning touchdowns.  Magnificent.  Not to mention, by the time the touchdowns were made it was actually September 20th…an awesome birthday gift and one that hasn’t been matched since (although my wife came really close three years ago with amazing tickets to a game at FedEx Field.)  One more thing, the Dallas Cowboys Trifecta of Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin were inducted in to the ring of fame during halftime of that game…even more reason to have this game at the top of the list!

11 PP Santana Moss Jersey Auto 4:10

Santana is getting close to the end of his career and I doubt he will suit up for anyone else.  He is still productive and can put up some great numbers with RG3 getting him the ball this season.  I would love to see him put up a 1,000 yard season and 5TD’s this year.  Could be a nice way to round out the career.

09 BS Santana Moss Refractor 53:199

#8 – Santana Moss

#9 – Chris Cooley

#10 – Gary Clark

#11 – Brian Orakpo

#12 – The Hogs

#PaniniPylon Prizm 1/1 – Santana Moss

My next winning bid for the Prizm Pylon Parallel cards is Tanaman, Santana Moss.

12 PP Santana Moss Pylon 1:1

This is probably my favorite of all the Prizm Redskin cards.  I absolutely love it when the Redskins rock the Burgundy jerseys over the ‘Gold’ (yellow) pants.  Love the color combination and the way it looks on the field and television…really cool.  Not to mention this is an action photo of what looks like a big play…I can’t really tell what game this was from, but i am going to assume he took it to the house for 6.

One of the great things about these parallel cards is the rainbow coloring.  You can kind of pick it up in the photo here, minus the glare of course.  One little piece of nice coincidence on the card is the wavy lines along his left leg.  It’s part of the basic card design, but appears to follow the outline of his leg in motion.  I don’t know, just thought it was a cool little happenstance detail.

More on Santana Moss later…