The San Francisco 49ers entered the 2022 NFL season hoping their young quarterback could take the reigns and guide the team deep into the playoffs. They didn’t know that player would be Brock Purdy, whose rookie cards are now among the hottest in the hobby.
Purdy, the 262nd pick in the 2022 NFL Draft has flourished with no expectations, guiding the 49ers to a division win after the team lost Trey Lance then Jimmy Garoppolo to injury. The Iowa State draftee is not considered to have any above-average qualities as a quarterback, but thus far, he’s done everything right. He may not have the best arm or the fleetest of feet, but he’s making every throw he needs to.
Since he took over as the 49ers starting quarterback on December 4, over 20,000 Purdy cards have sold on eBay alone, for more than $1.7 million. Forty cards have sold for $2,000 or more with an average selling price of $86. Impressive, considering that Mr. Irrelevant, a nickname given to the last pick in each NFL draft, has significantly fewer cards on the market than first-round rookies like Kenny Pickett and Chris Olave.
That scarcity is just adding to his value, with collectors and speculators picking up whatever they can find. At least there is a decent supply available now from several different products, thanks Panini’s focus on players on the offensive side of the game. Not that long ago, you wouldn’t have seen a seventh round draft pick in any set issued during the season.
Autographed Purdy rookie cards are available in several collegiate products and he appears in his 49ers uniform on products released after the start of the 2022 season including Certified, Spectra, Black, Elite and Mosaic (of course, there are many more to come between now and next spring). You find his official base rookie cards in those same products and he’s also had some on demand cards issued through Panini and Leaf.
Collectors and prospectors have been willing to roll the dice that Purdy isn’t just a one season wonder. Here are some of the sets in which he can be found so far, as well as some of his highest selling cards to date.
2022 Panini Certified – Rookie Signatures Mirror Black 1/1 (PSA 10) – $22,500
This 1/1 auto graded a PSA 10 with a 10 auto grade recently racked up over $20,000 for one eBay seller. This is the only auto set in the product that Purdy is featured in, though he is in the base set. His numbered rookie base parallels will also fetch quite a pretty penny, particularly since Certified is a classic fan-favorite set. The Black 1/1 finish also provides a great color match for the 49ers team colors.
2022 Panini National Treasures Collegiate – Rookie Patch Auto 1/1 – $15,000
This 1/1 National Treasures Collegiate rookie patch auto sold for a whopping $15,000 earlier this month. This card is currently by far his highest selling collegiate card. Despite it not featuring the NFL uniform, the National Treasures brand is unparalleled. Not me mention, we still do not know if Purdy will have a true rookie patch auto in the NFL version of 2022 National Treasures. It’s a hefty price to pay, but on-card patch autos of Purdy are few and far between.
2022 Panini Mosaic – Gold /10 and Gold Auto /10 – $5,000
Oddly enough, both a gold /10 and a gold auto /10 sold for $5,000 in the recently released 2022 Panini Mosaic. Collectors love chasing gold, and the first chromium set to be featured on this list is famous for its color parallels. The auto and non-auto versions selling for the same price, however, tells us that the market is still very fluid for Purdy. Collectors are willing to pay high prices for his cards, but true value is still up in the air and is constantly changing with every game he plays.
2022 Panini Spectra – Rookie Auto Neon Pink /15 – $3,600
2022 Panini Spectra is the first truly high end set that Purdy has been featured in while sporting 49ers colors (although he does have the incorrect jersey number in the photo featured on the card). At $800 a box, the latest Panini football release will surely see Purdy cards raise the bar even higher than what this card sold for.
2022 Panini Elite – Turn of the Century Gold Auto /5 – $3,049
As previously mentioned, collectors love chasing gold cards, and this Purdy auto out of 2022 Panini Elite sold for over $3,000 in December. Similarly to Certified, the Turn of the Century set is the only one that features Purdy as an auto subject in the set.
Another big hit featuring the Niners’ young star was just pulled from a pack this week:
Meanwhile, back in his home state of Arizona, the popularity of Purdy’s football cards has caught the eye of at least one local television station:
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A live look at the most watched Brock Purdy rookie cards is below. To see eBay listings for his cards that are about to close, click here.
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