Among the sizeable number of new releases that are arriving at hobby shops and online retailers is 2022 Panini Playbook Football. As per usual (one of my wife’s favorite phrases), we grabbed one out of the newly arrived case and broke one for your amusement.
Playbook is the definition of a Brief Box Break as the box consists of four total cards.
Hearing that there are a mere four cards per box may cause some pause but each card is a certified hit, whether it be an autograph or in memorabilia form. Boxes are online right now for around $250.
White hot Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts graces the cover of the box and promotional material. We ripped our Jalen box and found our thick silver pack to see what was inside.
The first card on the top of our thick stack was a memorabilia hit out of the Down & Dirty insert set. We got Dallas Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence numbered 30 of 99 copies.
The patch is a very nice, multicolored, stitched version. As an added bonus, it actually does say “game worn material”, which is always a big plus with the current state of the game used sector of the hobby… or lack thereof.
Our second card was a Mammoth Materials blue napkin of Seattle Seahawks rookie running back Kenneth Walker, numbered 151 of 199.
Rushing for over 1,000 yards and nine scores, the Michigan State Spartan could have easily been named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Next up we got a bright Bronco orange Hot Routes memorabilia card of Denver Broncos semi-star wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, also numbered out of 199.
JJ was just a few short yardage receptions away from his first 1,000 yard season last year.
The next card was our first autograph, a flashy Hash Marks of the Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Kenneth Murray. This sticker auto parallel was numbered 27 of 49.
The third year LB had 50 solo tackles, one sack, one forced fumble and one interception this past season. A solid showing for the young player.
The box text stated that we would receive four hits. We had to do a double take as we found a fifth card in our box–and our first booklet. This Rookie Jersey Autograph booklet of Green Bay Packers star rookie wide receiver Christian Watson was numbered 254/299. It features a nice on-card autograph on one half and the other half contains a big piece of memorabilia.
Our antennas were up, though, because the jersey piece appears to be blue, so we were looking further into that to see if the team had worn some type of throwback at some point during the year (not that we were expecting an actual game used piece anyway) that would match this somewhat odd color. The Packers have worn blue in the past (their 1920s uniforms were blue and gold) but it does not appear they did during Watson’s rookie season so where this swatch came from, I don’t know. Watson became one of departing quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ favorite targets late in the year, grabbing 41 passes for over 600 yards and seven touchdowns.
Our 2022 Playbook box break would not please someone looking to flip the contents for a profit but getting an extra card was at least a nice bonus.
Check out sports card boxes of all kinds in Sports Zone’s online store here.