In the spring of 2021, Topps released a direct to consumer product featuring Trevor Lawrence, the former Clemson standout and the NFL’s #1 draft pick.
The 50 card set was released in boxes sold directly to consumers on Topps.com. Each box contained one “pack” of 25 cards and retailed for $75. Two different box designs were used and reflect the artistic nature of the product. Twenty of the cards utilize artwork created by Trevor’s brother and sister-in-law. The design of the art cards(and the boxes) has a very 70s vibe to it, while the other 30 cards utilize various Topps football designs from 1955 - 1998. One aspect I really like is the way the card backs talk about which set the card represents and includes some interesting facts about the original set.
Topps does not have a collegiate license, and they have not had a NFL license since 2015, so none of the cards have logos in the photos. Other than the utilization of the retro designs, the cards have a very Leaf or Onyx look to them in my opinion.
So why would collectors pay $75 for an unlicensed, logo-less set? I’m glad you asked! One in every 5 boxes contains an on-card auto of Trevor, that’s why. In addition, there are parallels versions of the base cards included in 1:2 boxes. Each of the 50 base card designs gets a serial numbered auto version, and there are 7 different levels of scarcity ranging from the most common Orange /99 to the coveted Platinum 1/1.
Orange /99
Purple /44
Black /25
Teal /16
Yellow /10
Red /5
Platinum /1
Before we go on to the regular parallels, I want to take a minute to discuss what this means from a production perspective. Based on the parallels listed above, each card has 200 autos. Multiply that by the 50 cards in the set, and it looks like Trevor signed 10,000 cards for this product alone! With an auto falling 1:5 boxes, that means about 50K boxes were produced.
As I mentioned before, there are also non-auto parallels which fall 1:2 boxes. The colors and tiers are as follows:
Blue /199
Green /150
Orange /99
Purple /50
Black /25
Teal /16
Yellow /10
Red /5
Platinum /1
Here are both versions of the Topps x Trevor Lawrence boxes.
Apart from the Leaf Pro Set product, these cards are some of the first produced which feature Lawrence autos, and the fact that they are on-card is even better. Some of the photos combine very well with the retro designs, and others leave a little more to be desired. In my opinion, the same can be said from the artistic designs. I really like some, but others don’t really appeal to me. Overall, I like what Topps did with this product. They took a chance going after a highly popular player, securing 10K autos, and releasing an unlicensed product.
Also, if you haven’t heard, I started a new Podcast called the WaxPackHero Sports Card Minute! It’s available here directly on the site at the Podcast link at the top of the page, or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon, and TuneIn! Check it out, let me know what you think, and tell your friends!