Alright, let me tell you about my little dive into Lamar Jackson rookie cards. It wasn’t some grand plan, just kinda happened. I remember watching him play early on, that crazy speed and throwing style, and thought, “This guy’s different.” Naturally, my mind drifted to collectibles, thinking maybe I should grab one of his rookie cards before things got nuts.
Starting the Search
So, I started looking around. First place was online, just typing it into search bars and seeing what popped up. Man, it was a lot. You had Panini Prizm, Donruss Optic, the regular Donruss Rated Rookie, Select, Contenders tickets… just tons of brands and variations. Honestly, it felt a bit overwhelming right off the bat. I wasn’t trying to invest my life savings, just wanted a cool card of a player I liked.
I popped into a local card shop too. Talked to the owner. He showed me a few, mostly the base cards. Saw a couple of graded ones behind the counter, prices were already climbing even back then. He mentioned things like Silver Prizms and Optic Holos being the ones people really chase. Sounded complicated.
Getting My Hands on Some
Didn’t want to spend a fortune, so I started small. I think I first bought a couple of the standard Donruss Rated Rookie cards off eBay. They were cheap, looked cool enough. Felt good to actually have them in hand. Then I got brave and bought a blaster box of something, maybe it was Optic? Can’t recall exactly. Ripped it open hoping for that Lamar magic. Didn’t hit a big one, got some decent stuff but no Lamar rookie.
- Scoured online marketplaces.
- Visited a local hobby shop.
- Bought some base rookie cards directly.
- Tried my luck opening some retail packs.
The prices just kept creeping up, especially for anything shiny or numbered. I saw people talking about PSA grades, BGS grades… 9s, 10s. It started feeling less like collecting and more like playing the stock market. I looked into getting a nice Prizm or Optic, maybe a base version, but even those were getting pricey if they looked clean.
Where I Landed
After a while, chasing the next big hit or the perfectly graded card just wore me out. It wasn’t fun anymore, felt more like pressure. I looked at the few cards I had gathered. The simple Donruss Rated Rookie still felt the most ‘real’ to me, reminding me of just liking the player.
So, what did I end up doing? I sold off a couple of the slightly better ones I’d picked up when the market was hot. Made a little bit, nothing crazy. Kept that basic Donruss Rated Rookie, though. It sits on my desk sometimes. For me, that was enough. I still follow Lamar, still think he’s incredible to watch. But the rookie card frenzy? Yeah, I tapped out. Just wanted to share how that went for me.
