Movin' the Chains: Weekly stories of the NFL hobby
By John McTaggart
Everybody like a good story, don’t they?
Well, this far, the NFL has provided a few good ones, bit none as compelling, in hobby terms, as the Minnesota Vikings.
Being a born-and-bred a diehard Detroit Lions fan myself, this actually brings me some pain to admit, but I’m a professional, and I’ll save the tears for after the last sentence of this column is complete.
The Vikings are 2-0 to kick of the 2024 campaign, and atop the NFC North division.
If that wasn't surprising enough, they’ve actually done it with some legit good play.
They’re running ball extremely effectively.
They’re defense has been good enough, and, this is where football hobby people need to pay attention — Sam Darnold has been really good at quarterback.
That’s right, the same guy that needs two walls in his house to hang all the jerseys from the teams he has played for in his NFL career, has been stellar.
The 7th year man out of the University of Southern California has led his squad to wins over the 49ers and the Giants (I know, it’s the Giants, but it’s still a W) to begin a season where most thought the only thing the Vikings would be playing for would be the first pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
So, how has our beloved hobby reacted?
Well, exactly how you’d expect our beloved hobby top react — Darnold rookies have jumped in price, after just two weeks the FOMO effect is in high gear!.
His PSA 9 2018 Panini Prizm Silver, for example, was sitting pretty at $35 before the season started, which I can understand.
Today, that same card lands at $95, which I can't understand.
His base Prizm rookie in a PSA 10 went from $15 before the the season, to $32 currently, with a spike of up to $50 after the win over San Francisco to start the season.
It’s all very indicative of what the hobby has become, which is both a blessing and a curse to all of us.
That aforementioned FOMO effect has people clicking buttons all over the interwebs and buying Darnold rookies banking on the fact he's finally turned the corner in his career and become a star — after just two weeks of play.
Did I buy any Darnold?
Nope, but I'm not mad at ya if you did.
The market is volatile, particularly with quarterbacks, but isn’t that part of the thrill?
Trying to time it right.
Trying to stay just a hare in front of the trend. It’s really what most of us who flip cards are trying to do, right?
We all know that if Darnold and the Vikes start losing, we’re looking at $15 base PSA 10s again.
But if they continue to win, and he plays well, then $32 for that same card might be a decent deal.
He, and the team, have been a great story early on this season — and that counts in the hobby.
So, as you tune in to a slate of NFL games this week, keep an eye out for the good storylines and move within the hobby based on those you believe have some legs— they’re out there.
And above all that, root for the Lions!
Now, I’ll take a moment to shed some tears over the Vikings 2-0 start.
John McTaggart has been in the trading card industry officially since 1986 (unofficially since 1979 when he opened his first pack of Topps baseball cards) when he and his younger brother started setting up at local card shows. Since then, his passion and love for the hobby, and the business-side of the hobby, in particular, has not wained one bit. John is an award-winning sports columnist, writer and photojournalist based in Detroit, Michigan. He currently is an executive editor for a big media outlet and the proud owner of The Detroit Trading Card Company LLC. He shares his home with a wife, four adorable dachshunds, two goldfish, his beloved golf clubs, and about a million sports cards (for real) on shelves in his basement. You can contact John at info@detroittradingcardco.com