Cheap Wax Wednesday Box Breaks: 1991 Fleer Ultra Football
1991 Fleer Ultra Football is an extremely simple set. The base checklist features an even 300 cards and the design is very simple. The cards feature a grey top and bottom border with white player and team names. That is it.
There also isn’t much else on the checklist. Since this is actually a retail box, there is only one insert set, Ultra Performances. Even those are so simple that they could easily be mistaken for base cards.
What this set does have going for it is one specific Hall of Fame Rookie Card. Brett Favre is found in this one, pictured in his black and gold Southern Mississippi uniform.
1991 Fleer Ultra Football Box Break
Cards per pack: 14
Packs per box: 36
Price paid: $28
Shop for 1991 Fleer Ultra Football boxes on eBay.
Pack 1 highlights:
Rodney Hampton, Reggie White & Jerry Rice
Pack 2:
Jim Harbaugh, Barry Sanders & Eric Metcalf
Pack 3:
Marcus Allen, Steve Atwater, Gary Anderson, Morten Andersen & Emmitt Smith Ultra Performances
As you can see, the Performances inserts don’t exactly differ a ton from the base cards. There’s simply a different logo.
Pack 4:
Michael Irvin
Pack 5:
Brent Jones & Warren Moon Ultra Performances
Pack 6:
Deion Sanders, John Elway, Boomer Esiason & Esera Tuaolo RC
Pack 7:
John Stephens, Brian Jordan & Anthony Munoz
Yes, the same Brian Jordan that had a 15-year major league baseball career. He’s one of the forgotten two-sport athletes.
Pack 8:
Willie Anderson & Ottis Anderson
Pack 9:
Derrick Thomas & Merril Hoge
Pack 10:
Lawrence Taylor, Charles Haley, Emmitt Smith, Herman Moore RC & Joe Montana Ultra Performances
Pack 11:
Greg Lloyd
Pack 12:
Craig “Iron Head” Heyward, Phil Simms, Troy Aikman & Henry Ellard
Pack 13:
Ricky Sanders, Joe Montana, Irving Fryar & Todd Marinovich RC
Heck of a photo choice on the Sanders card.
Pack 14:
Brett Favre RC, Thurman Thomas, Howie Long, Herschel Walker, Ickey Woods, William “Refrigerator” Perry & Sterling Sharpe
Pack 15:
Eric Bieniemy RC, Andre Reed & Tim Brown
Pack 16:
Ricky Watters RC & Don Beebe
Pack 17:
Bruce Smith & Warren Moon
Smith missed most of the 1991 season with an injury, and recorded just 1 1/2 sacks.
Pack 18:
Dan Marino, Jeff George & Andre Rison
Pack 19:
Darrell Green & Emmitt Smith Ultra Performances
Pack 20:
Michael “The Playmaker” Irvin
Pack 21:
Kevin Greene, Mike Singletary & Steve Young
Greene racked up 160 sacks in his NFL career, good enough for third all-time since sacks became an official stat in 1982.
Pack 22:
Boomer Esiason, John Elway & Andre Rison Ultra Performances
Pack 23:
Brian Jordan & Anthony Miller
Pack 24:
Willie Anderson
Pack 25:
Derrick Thomas, Art Monk, Rich Gannon & Thomas Ultra Performances
I am starting to wonder if someone in charge of photo choices wasn’t a huge Washington fan.
Pack 26:
Scott Norwood, Rod Woodson & Junior Seau
Pack 27:
Randall Cunningham
Pack 28:
Kevin Greene, Mike Singletary, Vinny Testaverde & Steve Young
Pack 29:
Randall Cunningham & Andre Rison Ultra Performances
Andre “Bad Moon” Rison had one rushing attempt in 1991. He lost nine yards.
Pack 30:
Lawrence Taylor, Herman Moore RC & Joe Montana Ultra Performances
Pack 31:
Greg Lloyd
Pack 32:
Art Monk, Russell Maryland RC, Andre Tippett, Henry Ellard, Troy Aikman & Derrick Thomas Ultra Performances
Pack 33:
Rod Woodson, Junior Seau & Joe Montana
Seau made his first Pro Bowl in 1991, starting a streak of a dozen straight selections.
Pack 34:
Brett Favre RC, Thurman Thomas & Howie Long
Pack 35:
Charles Haley, Emmitt Smith, Clay Matthews, Jim Everett, Eric Bieniemy RC & Andre Reed
Pack 36:
Nick Bell RC & Randall Cunningham CL
Lastly, the Emmitt Smith card back. I really like this simply for the bright colors.
And that will do it. With football wrapping up this weekend this is the end of the football product focus for the season. Crazy to say as I look out my office window at the snow, but baseball starts up soon enough.
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Want more installments of Shane Salmonson’s Cheap Wax Wednesday? Check out his other breaks in the archives.
