Tag Archives: Atlanta Falcons

Arena, NFL

Clark, Vince ‘Vinnie’

Cards: Action Packed Rookies 1991, Star Pics 1991, GameDay 1992
Acquired: TTM 2016, C/o Home
Sent:  8/6/16   Received:  10/25/18      (810 days)

Vinnie Clark was a member of The Ohio State University from 1988 to 1990. He impressed peers in 1990 when he posted 51 tackles, 3 fumble recoveries, and 6interceptions for 51 yards- which led the Big 10 Conference.  An athletic cornerback with sub 4.35 speed, Vinnie was the 19th player selected overall in 1991 by the Green Bay Packers. 

Vinnie played for the Packers from 1991 to 1992. During his time with the Pack, he recorded 15 starts, 4 interceptions, and 68 combined tackles. He joined the Falcons in 1993, and then late in 1994 joined the New Orleans Saints. This turned out oddly to be his best season as a pro, as he had 5 interceptions for 149 yards, 2 forced fumbles, and 73 total tackles.

Clark was selected by the expansion Jacksonville Jaguars in 1995. He’d start every game for the franchise, and record the first interception in the history of the franchise (albeit in the preseason). He’d finish 1995 with 1 interception and 66 tackles. He’d be released 4 games into 1996 and retire. 

He’s done a lot of coaching since then, briefly popping up in the Arena league coaching for the Columbus Destroyers. Vinnie is doing well currently as of this post, and is coaching High School Football in Ohio.

Well an obvious set need with the Action Packed 1991 Rookies card, but the GameDay 1992 and the Star Pics cards also found a home close to my heart. Vinnie had a lot of cards to choose from, and these really stood out to me. The Star Pics one just had this garish 1990s feel to it with the montage of footballs in the background/ His uniform with the oversized pads and numbers felt encompassing of the era. Vinnie’s GameDay card is an outstanding action entry. I really like how his whole body is squashed down into the canvas area and compliments the design quite nicely.

I saw a lot of successes for Vinnie fly by while I waited patiently for these cards to return. I had given up on them after a year or so, but Clark must have finally reached the bottom of his mail bag with my cards down there and decided to sign them after a scant 810 days.

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AAF, NFL

Knight, Trevor

Cards: Sage 2017, Sage 2017 Red, Sage 2017 Peak Performance, Topps AAF 2019
Acquired: IP 2018, San Antonio Commanders AAF Season Ticket Holders Party. IP 2019, San Antonio Commanders v Arizona Hotshots

I pretty much pegged that Trevor Knight would show up at the season holders ticket party for the San Antonio Commanders unveiling party, being that he is an SA native.  Once the team had announced that he was a member of the franchise I rushed to find any cards of his. I was surprised to find that Sage had made both a base set card of his and also a Peak Performance card- which I luckily got in the last box I broke into a few weeks before the event.

He wandered up with his family to the gates and blended in. It was a pretty low key introductory event for fans and players. It was easy to go up and talk to Trevor. He did not have his card, so I gave him the two extra I had, to which he told me that, “I was the man.” (Lol. Anyway- compliment taken.) We talked for a few minutes and he caught me up on his NFL travels. After a short stint in Arizona, he landed on the Falcons roster- but broke a few bones in his back ending his time there. 

Trevor split college ball time at both Oklahoma and Texas A&M. Losing out to Baker Mayfield for the QB job in 2015- Knight bolted down to AtM to play for the Aggies in 2016. There he had his finest college season completing 193 of 362 passes for 2432 yards, 19 touchdowns to 7 interceptions. A dual threat on the ground, he rushed 102 times for 614 yards and 10 TDs. 

Trevor is from San Antonio, so it makes sense that he plays in his hometown for the Comamnders, but the team saw otherwise. Apparently the Commanders were stocked at quarterback, with Dustin Vaughan, Trevor, and Luis Perez all coveted by other teams around the league. The AAF decided to balance out the QB position on the rosters of each team by holding a QB Draft in which you pick or protect a player each round. The consensus was that SA was going to hang onto Knight, but in a surprise- the Commanders opted to keep former Dallas Cowboy Dustin Vaughan instead. Trevor didn’t have to wait long to hear his named called as later that round the Arizona Hotshots selected him with their 6th pick.

Instead of starting Trevor at QB, the Hotshots went with John Wolford. Knight settled into the backup role and has seen some spot duty. His most extensive action came during week 3 against the Stallions when he threw for 95 yards on 8 of 18 throws. He scored his first TD of the season against the Fleet in week 7 when he rushed 4 times for 10 yards.

Knight remembered me from the meet and greet and came over to sign his AAF card with Wolford during that final game in San Antonio. I still think he’s got the juice and might find a home in the XFL in 2020.

NFL

Talley, Darryl ‘Spider-Man’

Cards: Action Packed 1991, SkyBox Colors 1993/94, ProSet 1991
Acquired: TTM 2016, C/o Home
Sent: 12/6/16 Received: 7/30/18    (599 days)

A second round pick of the Buffalo Bills in 1983, Darryl Talley never missed a game in 12 seasons for the Bills. The unusually injury immune linebacker was also a model of consistent play over his long career- that spanned in the end, 14 seasons and 4 Super Bowl appearances. Talley is the Bills’ all-time leading tackler with 1,137 takedowns, to go along with  38.5 sacks, 14 fumble recoveries, 12 interceptions and 2 touchdowns.  After the 1994 season, Talley hit the open market and signed with the Falcons, playing 1995 with them and 1996 with the Vikings before retiring.  He was inducted into the Bills Wall of Fame in 2003, and named to the Bills 50th Anniversary team in 2009.

Darryl has battled severe depression and financial hardship since his retirement, however he’s worked hard to conquer his demons, partially in part due to his wife and children. As of 2018 he acts as a football ambassador for the NFL Legends community of players. The goal is to reach out and help as many former players and let them know of the different programs that are available to them from the league. Here’s hoping things continue on the up and up for Spider-Man.

Darryl Talley had some fantastic cards over his years in the league. I was pleased to add these 3 interesting designs and/or dynamic photos to the Encyclopedia. His Action Packed 1991 card embodies everything I want to see in an exciting solo shot of a linebacker, with Talley in full pursuit about to pop a ball carrier. The card itself on the front is minimally designed, and this appeals to me, and Darryl inked this card in the right spot to accent it perfectly. – High marks indeed. Skybox had a smart debut with their base set in 1992. Their subsequent releases, not-so-much. It didn’t help that they along with their counterparts flooded the market with so much content it was impossible to stay loyal to any card company and follow a release schedule. Mind you this was the high days of adventure before the internet!

The ‘Colors’ 1993-1994 Skybox set was a really slick look but by the time this set came out, I had already had my bank account plundered regularly by the discovery of girls. Both this card and the ProSet 1991 showcase Darryl’s nice arm sleeves, that intentionally were in a webbed pattern to harken to his nickname- Spider-Man.

ProSet set the standard from 89 to 92 really. (Nobody talks about ProSet 93.) That was also their problem. I felt the cards were the minimum I’d expect from a company to show me, even though what ProSet showcased with the minimal design was really outstanding for its era before Photoshop. Great photo of Darryl. It is too bad that ProSet ate itself out of the market. I wonder what their brand would look like today if it still existed.  Overall though Darryl signed 3 of 4 cards, and has a great signature. I think I sent him a donation but honestly it was so long ago I can not recall.

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