Join Beckett Football’s Dan Hitt and Chris Olds as they rip into 2012 Panini Black in this latest edition of Box Busters.

What will they find inside? Watch and find out …

By Susan Lulgjuraj | Beckett Football Editor

Pretty sure the title of the post says it all.

Washington Redskins rookie running back Alfred Morris had only appeared in Panini America and Upper Deck in 2012, but Morris’ first Topps cards will come out in Blue Wave Refractor redemption packs, Topps announced earlier this week.

Morris will not have any cards in 2012 Topps Chrome base, which officially releases Friday, but was included in the Blue Wave packs because the company only recently signed him to a deal.

Morris is fourth in the league in rushing yards with 793 – just a yard shy of third place and fellow rookie Tampa Bay’s Doug Martin.

Related post: Where to find Alfred Morris Rookie Cards

Susan Lulgjuraj is an editor of Beckett Football. You can email her here with questions, comments or ideas. Follow her on Twitter here.

By Susan Lulgjuraj | Beckett Football Editor

Topps Chrome Football officially releases Friday and the company is promoting the use of on-card autographs.

But based on availability and timeliness, it didn’t happen for all players.

Instead collectors will get redemptions for certain players, and to take the sting out Topps is adding a bonus to those who redeem for the autograph cards.

Several players — Dwayne Allen, LaMichael James, Bernard Pierce, Russell Wilson, Mark Barron, Dre Kirkpatrick, Stephen Hill, Brian Quick, Matt Kalil – will be signing shortly, according to Topps.

For these players only, if a collector returns a redemption card for an autograph, they will receive a four-card pack of Topps Chrome Football Blue Wave Refractor parallels.

“The Blue wave program intended to make an undesirable situation (redemptions due to players not signing) more acceptable to our consumers,” Topps wrote on its Twitter account.

There are 110 subjects in the blue wave parallel set including some players who do not appear in the regular base set: Alfred Morris, Josh Gordon, Daryl Richardson, Brandon Bolden, Bobby Wagner, Vontaze Burfict, Jorvorskie Lane, Greg Zuerlein, Joseph Morgan, Rod Streater, Bryce Brown and Damaris Johnson.

These blue wave packs will also be the first time Morris autograph cards will be available from Topps. The Washington Redskins rookie running back only had cards in Panini America and Upper Deck until now. His autographs will not be in regular Topps Chrome packs.

“(A) late breaking deal allowed us to add to these special redemption packs,” a Topps representative wrote in an email.

Susan Lulgjuraj is an editor of Beckett Football. You can email her here with questions, comments or ideas. Follow her on Twitter here.

By Susan Lulgjuraj | Beckett Football Editor

The Monday Morning Collector is back for the seventh week of the NFL season. If we had to pick a game of the week, it would be the New York Giants against the Washington Redskins. It wasn’t the prettiest game played, but it was definitely exciting.

Now on to the awards.

Veteran of the Week
Matt Schaub, Houston Texans: Houston has come on as one of the best teams in the league. The Texans are 6-1 and have outscored opponents by 88 points this year. A big part of that success is Matt Schaub, the Texans quarterback. He’s been consistent week in and week out. On Sunday, Schaub finished 23-for-37 for 256 yards and two touchdowns in a 43-13 win over the Baltimore Ravens.

Chase cards:
2004 Hot Prospects #94 jersey/autograph /120
2004 SP Authentic #187 jersey/autograph /799
2004 Topps Chrome #211

Rookie of the Week
Alfred Morris, Washington Redskins: Robert Griffin III isn’t the only rookie to watch on the Redskins. The sixth-round draft pick ran for 120 yards on 22 carries, averaging 5.5 yards a touch in a tough loss against the New York Giants on Sunday. Morris enters today second in the league in rushing, just one yard behind Houston’s Arian Foster.

Chase cards:
2012 Elite Aspirations Autograph #185 /49
2012 Momentum #137 autograph /799
2012 Upper Deck Rookie Autographs #53

Breakout Performance of the Week
Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Bucs have been some tough-luck losers this year. They are 2-4, but have played better than their record shows. Freeman had a huge game on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints. He completed 24-of-42 passes for 420 yards and three touchdowns. Unfortunately for Bucs fans, TB still lost to the Saints 35-28.

Chase cards:
2009 Absolute Memorabilia #209 RPM autograph /199
2009 Bowman Chrome Rookie Autographs #112
2009 Exquisite Collection #190 jersey/autograph /99

Susan Lulgjuraj is an editor of Beckett Football. You can email her here with questions, comments or ideas. Follow her on Twitter here.

By Dan Good | Contributing Editor

Some of Robert Griffin III’s most sought-after cards are commanding used car prices.

The Washington Redskins rookie quarterback is one of football’s hottest stars – and he has the high-end cardboard to prove it. A Topps Platinum 1/1 autographed superfractor of RGIII is currently listed on eBay for a Buy It Now price of $10,000.

By Sunday morning, the seller had declined 11 offers for the card.

Another 1/1, this one a sketch card from 2012 Panini America, is priced at $2,995. The card carries Griffin’s penmanship. He drew a picture of a tree and wrote, “Plant your roots and watch them grow.”

Redskins fans have watched Griffin grow this season. Last week, the rookie ran for a 67-yard touchdown, leading Washington to a 38-26 victory over the Vikings.

Other Griffin cards listed on eBay include:

2012 Topps Finest Pulsar/Prism autograph refractor 3/10
2012 Topps Prime quad relic autograph 10/10
2012 Press Pass Showcase patches autographs front size tag 1/1
2012 Panini Certified Mirror Emerald quad relic autograph 3/5
2012 Finest Moment superfractor autograph 1/1
2012 Panini Momentum triple jersey autograph 1/1
2012 Topps Inception quad rookie autograph patches booklet (Griffin, Luck, Blackmon and Richardson) 3/5
2012 Topps Platinum Gold Refractor patch autograph 3/5

A Platinum gold refractor rookie patch autographs superfractor recently sold for $5,655.

Dan Good has been a journalist for more than a decade. He currently works at the New York Post. You can email Dan here with ideas, comments and questions. Follow him on Twitter here.

By Susan Lulgjuraj | Beckett Football Editor

Alfred Morris is currently one of the most popular NFL rookies, but no one was talking about the Washington Redskins running back when the season started.

When collectors pulled his cards, they usually went in the “eh” pile. However, football fans are searching their collections for any Morris cards they may have missed.

Morris had just six Rookie Cards, 23 autographs and 52 total cards right now. Compare that to fellow Redskins rookie Robert Griffin III who has 11 RCs, 313 autos and 655 total cards.

With such a small sample to choose from, collectors might have a hard time finding Morris’ cards.

In fact, through the first two months of the season, the only place to find Morris’ NFL cards are in Panini products. He appears in sets such as Score, Rookies and Stars, Prestige and Momentum.

Get a online price guide and a checklist of Morris here.

“The reason why we spotted him so early is as easy as who his coach is,” said Ben Ecklar, Panini America’s NFL Product Development Director said on the company blog. “Mike Shanahan has a history of rotisserie running backs and a history of playing rookie running backs early. We knew he was going to get opportunities and we felt strongly about his ability to succeed in those opportunities.”

Yep, he definitely got opportunities.

Morris didn’t come with the same hype as RG3. The 173rd draft pick drives a 1991 Mazda 626 and Florida Atlantic University was the only school to offer him a football scholarship. FAU went 1-11 his senior year.

But after Week 5, Morris is fourth in the league in running with 491 yards – only 60 yards behind the leader – and has four touchdowns in five games. The only players with more yards are Jamaal Charles, Arian Foster and Marshawn Lynch.

Here’s a breakdown of some of Morris’ most popular cards right now
- 2012 Prestige rookie autograph /899
- 2012 Elite Die-Cut auto
- 2012 Prominence autographs
- 2012 Momentum autographs
- 2012 Rookies and Stars

Susan Lulgjuraj is an editor of Beckett Football. You can email her here with questions, comments or ideas. Follow her on Twitter here.

By Susan Lulgjuraj | Beckett Football Editor

Almost 10,000 yards later, running back Clinton Portis is calling it quits.

Portis is just 77 yards shy of the 10K-mark for his career, but after nine years in the NFL Portis officially announced his retirement on Thursday.

Portis was one of the best running backs in the league for a good amount of that time, and when he entered the NFL, he had two explosive years. During that time, he had more than 3,000 yards rushing, 29 touchdowns and averaged 5.5 yards a carry.

The former Denver Broncos and Washington Redskins running back took to his Twitter account today a couple of hours before his press conference.

After all this time, how does Portis look on cards (Get a full Portis checklist here)?

Total cards: 3,997
Total value: $38,873.21
Average value: $9.73
Memorabilia: 1,385
Autographs: 274
RC: 65

That Rookie Card number is right. Portis has 65 of them ranging in value from a $1 or $2 to $40.

His 2002 Sweet Spot RC autograph numbered to 125 has a high book value of $40.

Tell us one of your favorite Portis memories and show off your collection in the comments below.

Susan Lulgjuraj is the editor of Beckett Football magazine. You can email Susan here with ideas, comments and questions. Follow her on Twitter here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Sports Card Monthly Editor

He’s the Heisman Trophy winner, the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft and now he’s one of Panini America‘s biggest draws.

He’s Robert Griffin III, and he’s the latest top player to sign with the Texas-based sports card manufacturer.

The company announced on Tuesday that Griffin — who threw for 4,293 yards and 37 touchdowns last season for Baylor University — will be showcased as a Washington Redskin on cards autographed and on packaging of Panini’s products beginning with Prestige, which arrives in June. (Need a Robert Griffin III checklist or OPG? Click here.)

“Robert Griffin III is one of the most dynamic playmakers to emerge at the quarterback position in many years and his extensive presence in our 2012 products will only add excitement to arguably the greatest rookie class of the last decade,” said Panini America CEO Mark Warsop. “We’re thrilled to have Griffin in the Panini America family and we can’t wait to deliver his historic first licensed trading cards to fans and collectors around the world.”

The company also noted that the Heisman winner “will be featured exclusively on the company’s pioneering HRX Video Trading Card technology” as part of the deal.

“As a kid, you go to the stores and you buy the trading cards and to know that I’ll finally be on those cards legitimately is very cool,” Griffin said. “Not everybody gets that chance and I’m thankful that Panini America is making it possible for me. I’ll definitely savor it and just continue to build toward a better future.”

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Sports Card Monthly magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Sports Card Monthly Editor

With the second pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, the Washington Redskins selected Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III just seconds ago.

Now, you can see his first Topps football card right here.

Card No. 340 in the 2012 Topps set will feature Luck — one of 110 NFL rookies who will be found in packs of the hobby staple when it arrives on Aug. 8.

Each 36-pack hobby box will include one autograph or Relic card inside as well as a selection of inserts and cards from the 440-card base set.

(Need a checklist of all existing Robert Griffin III cards or an OPG? Click here.)

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Sports Card Monthly magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

Based on the collector love Armstrong is receiving from his affable appearance at Beckett headquarters, the gritty Redskins receiver is clearly poised for hobby potential. Since Panini America‘s Tracy Hackler came through with his only Rookie Cards, and even a few pieces of critical AFL evidence, Armstrong graciously inked his cardboard likeness for the manufacturer’s followers.

In addition to the comment-to-win drawing here on Beckett.com, two more Armstrong-autographed cards are up for grab on Panini’s blog, The Knight’s Lance.

Newly convinced or not, Armstrong fans currently have two opportunities to kick-start their personal collections.